Secretary of State Antony Blinken says confrontation with China is not inevitable, but the United States must stand up with its allies for a rules-based system threatened by Chinese aggression.
Blinken was speaking shortly before a meeting with the foreign ministers of Australia, India and Japan. The four nations form the so-called “Quad,” a bloc of Indo-Pacific democracies created to counter China’s regional influence.
The Quad partners are united by an “affirmative vision for what the future can bring” and a “commitment to defend the rules-based system that we have spent tremendous time and effort building,” he added.Blinken’s trip is designed to reinforce America’s interests in Asia and its intent to push back against increasing Chinese assertiveness in the region. He will also visit Fiji and discuss pressing concerns about North Korea with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts in Hawaii.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he felt reassured by the shared commitment against coercion after meetings with Blinken, Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa. Australian Defense Minister Peter Dutton told Parliament on Thursday that Australia was facing the “most complex and potentially catastrophic regional security environment” since World War II.
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