KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -The United States will “stoutly defend its interests”, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Chinese counterpart Dong Jun during a meeting on Friday in Kuala Lumpur, flagging the importance of maintaining a balance of power in the region.
The meeting was the latest sign of gradually improving communications between the two sides, amid roiling regional tension and increased military deployments. It followed a teleconference call in September between the two.
In a post on X, Hegseth said he told the Chinese minister of national defence that the United States was concerned about China’s activities in the disputed South China Sea and around Taiwan, during a meeting he called “good and constructive”.
“We will continue discussions with the People’s Liberation Army on matters of mutual importance,” he wrote after the two met on the sidelines of a gathering of ASEAN defence ministers in the Malaysian capital.
“The United States does not seek conflict,” he added. “It will continue to stoutly defend its interests and ensure it has the capabilities in the region to do so.”
The remarks came after President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Taiwan did not figure in his meeting with President Xi Jinping in the South Korean city of Busan.
The Pentagon has been pushing for improved communications with China over its military modernisation and regional posture, including greater transparency over its nuclear weapons build-up and more theatre-level discussions with military commanders.
(Reporting by Danial Azhar; Writing by David Stanway and Greg Torode; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Clarence Fernandez)
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