Escalating conflicts. Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

US B-52 bombers have arrived in the Middle East, the US military said Saturday, a day after Washington announced their deployment in a warning to Iran, the AFP reported. The Pentagon said the deployment was made in keeping "commitments to the protection of U.S. citizens and forces in the Middle East, the defense of Israel, and de-escalation through deterrence and diplomacy."

Chinese experts said on Sunday that the US is unwilling to see large-scale conflicts arise in the Middle East during its presidential election period, but the consequence of the deployment may actually be detrimental to easing tensions and US' military pressure in the region will only exacerbate the conflicts.

"B-52 Stratofortress strategic bombers from Minot Air Force Base's 5th Bomb Wing arrived in the US Central Command area of responsibility," the military command for the Middle East and surrounding countries said in a post on social media, the AFP report said.

According to a release from the US Department of Defense on November 1, the deployment was made in keeping "commitments to the protection of U.S. citizens and forces in the Middle East, the defense of Israel, and de-escalation through deterrence and diplomacy."

"Should Iran, its partners, or its proxies use this moment to target American personnel or interests in the region, the United States will take every measure necessary to defend our people," Pentagon spokesperson Major General Pat Ryder said in the statement.

Sun Degang, director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Fudan University, told the Global Times on Sunday that the US is unwilling to see large-scale conflicts arise in the Middle East during its presidential election period and hopes to stabilize the regional situation.

"However, the consequence of the deployment is that it may make Israel feel that the US is backing it, which may actually be detrimental to easing tensions in the Middle East. As a result, it could exacerbate conflicts in the region and embolden Israel even further," Sun said.

Echoing Sun, Wei Dongxu, a Beijing-based military expert and media commentator, told the Global Times on Sunday that the US approach to conflicts and tensions in the Middle East through military pressure will only exacerbate the conflicts and is not conducive to resolving regional disputes.

"The US often employs double standards, taking many biased actions in favor of Israel, which only intensifies regional conflicts. The current US military presence in the Middle East has become a destabilizing factor in the region, and has even brought about more destructive effects, continually complicating the situation in the Middle East," Wei said.

According to the AP, Iran's supreme leader on Saturday vowed "a crushing response" over attacks on Iran and its allies. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that whether Israel or the US "will definitely receive a crushing response to what they are doing to Iran and the Iranian nation and to the resistance front."

Sun said that it is unclear what actions Iran might take following the deployment of US B-52 bombers to the Middle East. However, Iran's recent retaliatory actions against Israel may consider the US factor, leading to a cautious approach to avoid any accidental conflict with the US.