MOSCOW, May 29. /TASS/. The United States’ agreement on defense cooperation with Papua New Guinea is a step toward militarizing the Asia Pacific region and is meant to drag that country into geopolitical games against Russia and China, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Monday.

She noted that this agreement allows the US military to move freely across Papua New Guinea and its territorial waters and grants limitless access to its transport infrastructure.

"The signing of this document, drawn up on Washington’s initiative, can hardly be interpreted as anything else but a step toward militarizing the Asia Pacific region, fanning military tensions, and dragging Port Moresby into Washington’s geopolitical games against Russia and China," she noted.

According to Zakharova, despite promises not to use the territory of Papua New Guinea as a foothold to unleash a war, this agreement demonstrates otherwise. "Washington’s ultimate goals are clearly seen and they have an evident neo-colonial nature - to turn the island state in the southern Pacific into an outpost of projecting military force into the Asia Pacific region and ensuring America’s dominance at the expense of the security of other regional states," she stressed.