{"id":305,"date":"2026-05-30T04:17:07","date_gmt":"2026-05-30T04:17:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=305"},"modified":"2026-05-30T04:17:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-30T04:17:07","slug":"hegseth-reassures-pacific-allies-as-he-softens-china-threat-rhetoric","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=305","title":{"rendered":"Hegseth reassures Pacific allies as he softens China \u2018threat\u2019 rhetoric"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>SINGAPORE (AP) \u2014 U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth assured Pacific allies on Saturday that Washington remained committed to the region, but toned down previous comments calling China a threat.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=303\">When Sue Tilley met Lucian Freud, it changed her life. Now a painting of her could fetch $47 million<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Speaking to a group of world leaders, diplomats and top security officials at the Shangri-La defense conference in Singapore, Hegseth said that the region \u201chas profound implications for U.S. security and prosperity\u201d and that Washington\u2019s priority was to \u201cachieve a lasting and favorable balance of power in the Pacific.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was his second time addressing the forum. Last year, he <span>raised the ire of Beijing<\/span> by warning of rapidly developing threats from China, particularly its aggressive stance toward Taiwan. He said China is no longer just <span>building up its military forces<\/span> to take Taiwan, it\u2019s \u201cactively training for it, every day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This year, however, the meeting comes only about two weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump visited Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing, following which Trump called Xi <span>a \u201cgreat leader\u201d<\/span> and said that they were going to have a \u201cfantastic future together.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Hegseth, who was with Trump in Beijing, said the two leaders had agreed that China and the U.S. should \u201cbuild a constructive relationship of strategic stability, based on fairness and reciprocity, reaffirming that while our nations will vigorously protect our respective interests, we can secure practical, mutually beneficial agreements where our interests align.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>However, he said it was still an American priority to ensure that China should not be allowed to dominate the Indo-Pacific. <\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<!-- AP \"Read More\" embed (place mid-article) --><\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cThere is rightful alarm regarding China\u2019s historic military buildup and the expansion of its military activities in the region and beyond,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe share a clear-eyed assessment of that security environment and a mutual understanding that a Pacific dominated by any hegemon would unravel the regional balance of power and undermine the equilibrium we all seek to preserve.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>After the meetings between Xi and Trump, the American president <span>raised questions about Washington\u2019s willingness<\/span> to defend Taiwan, calling a new $14 billion arms package that he has yet to greenlight \u201ca very good negotiating chip for us\u201d with China. <\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=297\">Trump administration grants rare TPS reprieve, extending protections for 11,000 Lebanese<\/a><\/p>\n<p>China claims the democratic self-governing island as its own, and Xi has not ruled out using force to take it. The U.S. is required by law to help provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, though follows a policy of \u201cstrategic ambiguity\u201d on whether it would intervene militarily if China were to attack the island.<\/p>\n<p>Hegseth told the forum that there was \u201cno change in our status\u201d toward Taiwan, but would not comment on the arms deal. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cAny decision about future Taiwan arms sales, as the president said, will rest with him,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n<p>He underscored the Trump administration\u2019s insistence that allies increase defense spending, saying \u201cwe need partners, not protectorates.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>He lauded several countries in Asia for their efforts, while reiterating criticism of European allies, without naming names, who he suggested got \u201cdistracted by empty globalist rhetoric about the rules-based international order.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cOur partners in Asia have long understood that the bedrock of a durable partnership is not based on idealistic values but on the concrete alignment of national interests,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen our interests diverge, we adjust pragmatically, without the drama or the moralizing,\u201d he added. \u201cI think Western Europe might take note \u2014 this is a mindset we fully embrace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hegseth did not mention either the war in Ukraine or Iran war in his speech. When asked about Iran, he only said that Trump had assured him that when negotiations with Tehran had concluded, \u201cany deal will be a good deal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=295\">Israeli troops push deeper into Lebanon as the two sides start military talks at the Pentagon<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth assured Pacific allies Saturday that Washington remains committed to the region while softening past comments that described China as an imminent threat. Speaking at the Shangri-La defense conference in Singapore, Hegseth said U.S. policy aims to preserve a favorable balance of power and prevent any country from dominating the Indo-Pacific. His remarks came after President Donald Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing and praised prospects for U.S.-China ties. Hegseth said there is no change in U.S. policy toward Taiwan but declined to address a pending arms package. He also urged Asian allies to increase defense spending.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":304,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-305","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Hegseth reassures Pacific allies as he softens China \u2018threat\u2019 rhetoric - Top Moving Pros<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=305\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hegseth reassures Pacific allies as he softens China \u2018threat\u2019 rhetoric - Top Moving Pros\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth assured Pacific allies Saturday that Washington remains committed to the region while softening past comments that described China as an imminent threat. Speaking at the Shangri-La defense conference in Singapore, Hegseth said U.S. policy aims to preserve a favorable balance of power and prevent any country from dominating the Indo-Pacific. His remarks came after President Donald Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing and praised prospects for U.S.-China ties. Hegseth said there is no change in U.S. policy toward Taiwan but declined to address a pending arms package. 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Speaking at the Shangri-La defense conference in Singapore, Hegseth said U.S. policy aims to preserve a favorable balance of power and prevent any country from dominating the Indo-Pacific. His remarks came after President Donald Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing and praised prospects for U.S.-China ties. Hegseth said there is no change in U.S. policy toward Taiwan but declined to address a pending arms package. 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