United States Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth on Saturday claimed that China is preparing to “use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo Pacific” and the US is prepared to “fight and win” if deterrence efforts fail. He further urged the allies in the Indo Pacific to bolster military coordination and also increase their military spending.
Pentagon Chief Urges Asian Allies To Boost Defence Spending Amid Chinese Threat
The Secretary pointed out the absence of China’s top military officials from the summit, who had sent over an academic delegation instead.
While speaking at the annual defense summit at Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, he highlighted how the Indo Pacific region was a priority for the Trump government. Hegseth asserted that "There's no reason to sugar coat it. The threat China poses is real, and it could be imminent.”
He also said that any attempt by China to conquer Taiwan would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world.
Hegseth underlined the urgency to tackle China, which is consistently increasing military pressure in the South China Sea and Taiwan. “China has demonstrated that it wants to fundamentally alter the region’s status quo. We cannot look away and we cannot ignore it. China’s behavior toward its neighbors and the world is a wake up call and an urgent one,” he said.
“We ask, and indeed, we insist that our allies and partners do their part on defense. Our defense spending must reflect the dangers and threats that we face today, because deterrence doesn’t come on the cheap,” he added further.
China had earlier claimed that it is prepared to fight any type of war with the US in the backdrop of the US president Donald Trump imposing heavy tariffs on the nation.
Earlier this month, both nations had convened in Geneva that culminated in the lowering of tariffs imposed from both sides. However, Trump had recently asserted that China has “totally violated” the Geneva deal.
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