Vice President Kamala Harris said during her first official visit to the Philippines on Monday that the United States will honor a 1951 bilateral defense treaty and defend Filipino ships against Chinese aggression in the South China Sea.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defense Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe traded warnings over the weekend on Taiwan.
Chinese Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe appeared to threaten a war with America during remarks on Sunday at the Shangri-La Dialogue, a global security conference in Singapore, asserting that the Communist Party would “fight to the very end” to annex Taiwan.
Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and armed forces chief Mohammad Bagheri in Tehran on Wednesday. The Iranians pledged their support for mutual ally Russia despite worldwide condemnation of its attack on Ukraine, and indicated a desire for more extensive military coordination with China.
Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe told the annual Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore this weekend that Beijing is prepared to use military force to back up its claims on Taiwan and disputed islands in the South China Sea.
Acting U.S. Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan met with Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe on Friday at the Shangri-La Dialogue, a major Asian security summit held in Singapore.
China, blindsided by the Trump administration’s trade offensive, has been working overtime to maintain its relationship with the Pentagon.
