In Talks With India, US Cautions About China's "Authoritarian Interests"
NDTV
"China poses a major challenge," Secretary Austin said in his opening remarks at the 2+2 ministerial meeting being co-hosted along with his cabinet colleague Secretary of State Antony Blinken for their Indian counterparts, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
China is seeking to refashion the Indo-Pacific region and the international system in ways that serve its "authoritarian interests", US Defense Secretary said on Monday, asserting a strong bilateral partnership with India is a critical building block in a more resilient, regional security architecture.
"China poses a major challenge," Secretary Austin said in his opening remarks at the 2+2 ministerial meeting being co-hosted along with his cabinet colleague Secretary of State Antony Blinken for their Indian counterparts, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
"We all understand the challenges that we face in the Indo-Pacific. The People's Republic of China is seeking to refashion the region and the international system more broadly in ways that serve its authoritarian interests. But as we operationalise our defence agreements and take our cooperation to the next level, I believe that we can sustain and strengthen a favourable balance of power in the region," he said.
He looked forward to discussing a range of bilateral defense priorities, including deeper information sharing and industrial cooperation. All this will help to ensure that their our militaries are ready to meet any challenge, he said.
