WASHINGTON – From Japanese soil, Foreign Minister Antony Blinken slammed China’s widespread use of ‘coercion and aggression’ on the international scene and warned that the US would be hit back if necessary.
“China uses coercion and aggression to systematically defend autonomy in Hong Kong, undermine democracy in Taiwan, abuse human rights in Xinjiang and Tibet, and assert maritime claims in the South China Sea that violate international law,” Blinken said in a statement. news conference said.
“We are united in the vision of a free and open Indo – Pacific region, where countries follow the rules, work together when they can and resolve their differences peacefully. And in particular, we will, if necessary, push back if China uses coercion or aggression to get its way, ”he added.
Blinken’s comments come a few days before he and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan have high-level personal talks with Chinese representatives. Blinken and Sullivan will meet with the People’s Republic of China Yang Jiechi, a member of the Communist Party’s best decision-making body, and Wang Yi, the foreign minister, in Alaska.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Tuesday that Beijing hopes a stronger US-Japan relationship will not hurt others in the region.
“We believe that cooperation and communication between Japan and the USA should strengthen local understanding and trust, that it should be beneficial for cooperation between countries in the region and beneficial for peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, and that it does not harm any third party or the interests of any third party, ”he said during an English translation during a news conference.
President Joe Biden, who spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping last month, said earlier that his approach to China would be different from his predecessor, as he would work more closely with allies to bring about a setback against Beijing.
“We will confront China’s economic abuse,” Biden said in a State Department speech, describing Beijing as “America’s most serious competitor.”
“But we are also ready to work with Beijing if it is in America’s interest to do so. We will compete from a strong position by building better at home and working with our allies and partners.”
In February, Biden announced a new Department of Defense task force aimed at assessing the U.S. military’s strategy.
“This is how we will meet the challenge of China and ensure that the American people win the competition in the future,” Biden told the Pentagon during his first visit as commander-in-chief.
The country’s leading diplomat and defense minister, Lloyd Austin, arrived in Tokyo on Tuesday in an effort to forge alliances and reaffirm alliances with key U.S. partners in the region. On Wednesday, the couple travels to Seoul where they plan to discuss cooperation on security and challenges that China and North Korea largely pose. Blinken and Austin’s joint trip is the first overseas trip for the two under Biden.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Japanese Secretary of State Toshimitsu Motegi and Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi attend the 2 + 2 meeting in Iikura Guest House in Tokyo, Japan, on March 16, 2021.
Kim Kyung-Hoon | Reuters
North Korea also broke its silence on Tuesday for the first time since Biden became president and sent an aggressive message to the United States.
‘We take this opportunity to warn the new US government to give up [gun] powder smell in our country, ‘said Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, referring to joint US and South Korean military exercises in the region.
“If it [the U.S.] wants to sleep in peace for the next four years, it should be better not to cause stink during the first step, “she added according to an English translation.
The Biden administration has unsuccessfully tried to restart nuclear talks with North Korea.
Under third-generation North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the withdrawn state conducted its most powerful nuclear test, launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile and threatened to send missiles into the waters near US territory Guam.
Since 2011, Kim has launched more than 100 missiles and conducted four nuclear weapons tests, which is more than his father, Kim Jong Il, and grandfather, Kim Il Sung, launched over a period of 27 years.
He has not conducted any missile tests since Biden’s inauguration on January 20.