At the ASEAN Defense Summit in Malaysia, Chinese Defense Minister Tung Ťün met with his American counterpart Pete Hegseth, reports the France24 portal.
He emphasized that China and the US should build mutual trust, which he believes is crucial for stable and peaceful coexistence. At the same time, however, he warned Washington to be mindful of its “words and deeds” on the Taiwan issue.
Dong described the reunification of China with Taiwan as a historically inevitable process and called on the US to clearly oppose Taiwan's independence. Beijing considers this island to be its territory, even though the US officially only recognizes China but at the same time supplies Taiwan with weapons for defense.
US Secretary Hegseth described the talks as constructive, but reiterated Washington's concern about China's behavior in the South China Sea, around Taiwan, and toward US allies. However, he assured that the US is not seeking conflict, but will defend its strategic interests.
Hegseth also met with Indian Minister Rajnath Singh in Malaysia. Together, they signed a 10-year agreement on deeper defense cooperation, which includes the purchase of American patrol aircraft, missile systems, and combat vehicles.
As Hegseth explained, defense relations between the US and India are currently stronger than ever before in history.
(lup)