US Secretary of State John Kerry has just concluded his visit to Vietnam and the Philippines, two major countries which have territorial conflicts with China in the South China Sea. Kerry's visit has re-underlined Washington's maneuver around China's doorstep, which has even been reaffirmed by a Foreign Policy report, which says "Kerry's return to Vietnam is all about blocking China."

During his stay in Hanoi on Monday, Kerry pledged the US government would provide an additional $32.5 million aid, including $18 million for Vietnam, to help Southeast Asian nations protect their territorial waters, according to media reports. Vietnam will also be given five fast patrol-boats to strengthen its Coast Guard.

According to the US State Department, with this supplementation, US maritime security assistance to the region will surpass $156 million over the next two years.

Kerry arrived in the Philippines to wrap up his trip yesterday. It is highly possible that he will fast-track an agreement between Washington and Manila that will expand the presence of US military forces in the Philippines. This agreement is also what Manila is looking for to deal with China's "assertiveness" in the South China Sea.

According to Kerry's statement in Hanoi, he said "peace and stability in the South China Sea is a top priority for us and for countries in the region," and the US is "very concerned by and strongly opposed to coercive and aggressive tactics to advance territorial claims."

However, the US is hardly qualified to be a peacekeeper in the South China Sea. In fact, it is more like a troublemaker.

On the one hand, US interference into the territorial dispute in this region, where Washington is neither a claimant nor a direct stakeholder, has messed up the situation.

On the other hand, the US keeps throwing bones to Southeast Asian countries, especially these territorial claimants. Washington is employing these nations to lever a growing China.

The US has been heavily fixed to the old mindset that an emerging country like China has only one big label, which is threat. However, the US should consider the possibility that as the major two forces that have decisive powers in the future international community, Washington and Beijing could build a sustainably positive interaction mechanism. But such a mechanism can never become reality without the foundation of mutual trust.

This trust requires respect, which in the first place can be felt when both sides realize and recognize each other's sphere of self-security. The US egging China's neighbors on and challenging China on its "doorstep" has little chance sealing the country for good.