{"text":[[{"start":10.95,"text":"US defence secretary Pete Hegseth has praised relations with Beijing as “better than they’ve been in many years”, while still piling pressure on Indo-Pacific allies to sharply boost defence spending to match “China’s historic military build-up”."}],[{"start":24.85,"text":"The defence secretary, speaking on Saturday at the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, said Donald Trump’s trip to Beijing to see Xi Jinping this month, the first by a US president in nine years, was “truly historic”."}],[{"start":39.05,"text":"“Relations between the United States and China are better than they’ve been in many years,” Hegseth said in a speech that did not directly mention Taiwan, the main potential flashpoint between the US and China in the region. "}],[{"start":51.349999999999994,"text":"But he said to maintain “strategic stability” with China, the US and its allies needed to negotiate from a position of strength, which would require US partners in the region to raise military spending sharply to 3.5 per cent of GDP."}],[{"start":66.19999999999999,"text":"“For those nations that rise to this challenge, that embrace responsibility as true partners, the benefits will be clear . . . expedited arms sales, deep industrial-based collaboration, expanded intelligence sharing . . . But for those who believe they can continue to freeride on the generosity of the American taxpayer, hear us now. Those days are over,” he said."}],[{"start":88.69999999999999,"text":"He pointed to South Korea as an example of a good partner, after President Lee Jae Myung committed to spending 3.5 per cent of GDP on defence. "}],[{"start":97.94999999999999,"text":"“They live on the front lines, and so they build real combat power,” he said while praising other countries in the region including Japan. “We’re seeing a similar and critical shift in Tokyo.”"}],[{"start":109.54999999999998,"text":"Hegseth said there was “rightful alarm” in the region “regarding China’s historic military build-up and the expansion of its military activities in the region and beyond”. "}],[{"start":120.44999999999999,"text":"“While a durable peace is our goal, make no mistake: America is a Pacific nation, and we insist that China respect our longstanding position in the region,” he said."}],[{"start":129.89999999999998,"text":"The annual conference in Singapore is seen as an important chance for the US and its allies to meet their Chinese counterparts. For the past two years, however, China has not sent a high-level delegation including the defence minister."}],[{"start":142.99999999999997,"text":"Apart from taking a notably softer stance on China than at the forum last year, Hegseth’s speech was striking in its omission of Taiwan, which has typically been a key part of past addresses by US defence secretaries. Last year Hegseth issued a stark warning that a Chinese military attack on Taiwan “could be imminent”."}],[{"start":162.44999999999996,"text":"On Saturday, the closest he came in his prepared speech to mentioning Taiwan, over which China’s Communist Party government claims sovereignty, was to say that the US remains committed to the defence of the “first island chain” — the ring of western Pacific countries that includes Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines."}],[{"start":180.39999999999995,"text":"Trump said after meeting Xi that an impending $14bn arms sale package his administration has compiled for Taiwan could be a “negotiating chip” in talks with China. His remarks sparked anxiety in Taiwan and among Indo-Pacific allies, raising concern that he would not proceed with the package, which has not yet been formally unveiled."}],[{"start":200.64999999999995,"text":"The US navy secretary recently suggested that the Pentagon had paused arms sales to Taiwan because of the war in Iran. But Hegseth downplayed that comment, saying there was no connection between the level of US weapons stockpiles and arms for Taiwan. He stressed that the decision on future arms sales would be made by Trump and that the US had sufficient arms stocks and production."}],[{"start":224.89999999999995,"text":"“Beijing’s pressure against Taipei has not changed since last year, when Secretary Hegseth was right to call it out. This year’s remarks presented an opportunity to communicate that message again, and the silence will speak volumes,” said Chris Estep, a former Pentagon official at the Foreign Policy Research Institute. "}],[{"start":242.69999999999996,"text":"“Players across the region are stepping up to invest in their defences as he rightly pointed out. Not mentioning Taipei’s recent decision to spend more . . . will raise eyebrows,” he added."}],[{"start":259.99999999999994,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1780125201_3616.mp3"}