United States Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has reiterated that the US will stand by its allies and partners in the Asia Pacific as he accused China of “provocative and destabilising” military activity around Taiwan, and an increasingly “coercive and aggressive” approach to its wide-ranging maritime claims in the Asia Pacific.
In a nearly hour-long address to the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Austin stressed that the US was committed to the “rules-based international order” and would work in partnership to maintain peace and stability in the region.
