Beijing responds sharply after hegseth labels China a threat
China has fired back at U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after he labeled the country a threat to the United States, amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing, News.Az informs via Miami Herald.
“Hegseth deliberately ignored regional nations' desire for peace and development, choosing instead to promote a Cold War mindset and bloc confrontation,” said the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
The Context
Hegseth said on Saturday that the U.S. is stepping up its efforts to resist China's plans to "dominate and control" Southeast and East Asia. China's defense minister was absent from this year's event and sent a lower-level delegation instead. The remarks sparked fury from Beijing as the relationship between the two superpowers remains on edge, with tensions escalating over trade, security, and regional influence.
What To Know
The foreign ministry accused Hegseth of vilifying the country with defamatory accusations during the Shangri-La Dialogue, a global security summit, and criticized him for promoting a Cold War mentality. The statement also accused the United States of fueling regional conflict and escalating tensions in the region.
"No country in the world deserves to be called a hegemonic power other than the U.S. itself," the Chinese foreign ministry said.
Speaking in Singapore on Saturday, Hegseth said Washington will strengthen its overseas defenses in response to what the Pentagon views as rapidly escalating threats, particularly due to an increasingly assertive posture toward Taiwan.
China's army "is rehearsing for the real deal," Hegseth said. "We are not going to sugarcoat it—the threat China poses is real. And it could be imminent."
"The Taiwan question is entirely China's internal affair. No country is in a position to interfere. The U.S. should never imagine it could use the Taiwan question as leverage against China. The U.S. must never play with fire on this question," the Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson said.
Beijing and Washington have been embroiled in a tit-for-tat over tariffs. Last month, the two sides reached a temporary deal to reduce U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs from 145 percent to 30 percent for 90 days, giving negotiators time to work toward a more comprehensive agreement.
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