US admiral says Indo-Pacific is standing up against China
CANBERRA: Countries in the Indo-Pacific region are beginning to take a stand against Chinese attempts to manipulate them through debt-trap diplomacy, coercion and bullying, a senior U.S. naval commander said Thursday.
Adm. Philip S. Davidson, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, told a foreign policy think-tank in Sydney that all nations in the region were involved in a strategic competition “between a Beijing-centric order and a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
Countries that established closer ties to China in expectation of economic growth and infrastructure development “often find themselves worse off in the end,” Adm. Davidson said.
"Through excessive territorial claims, debt-trap diplomacy, violations of international agreements, theft of intellectual property, military intimidation and outright corruption, the Communist Party of China seeks to control the flow of trade, finance, communications, politics and a way of life throughout the Indo-Pacific,” Adm. Davison said.
"The Communist Party of China uses its economic advantages to force other governments to reverse positions toward agreements that benefit China,” he added.
China has scoffed at what it calls U.S. interference in the Asia-Pacific region and has denied linking aid to politics.
According to Adm. Davidson, more countries were now asking the United States for advice on dealing with China than they did five years ago.
"I am optimistic that the region is now waking up to that aggressive behavior, but more importantly, beginning to take a stand against it,” Adm. Davidson said.
"Beijing has shown a willingness to intervene in free markets and to hurt Australian companies simply because the Australian government has exercised its sovereign right to protect its national security,” Davidson said. - AP