US stands against China’s ‘bullying’ behaviour, Pentagon chief says

The United States stands with countries fighting China’s “bullying behaviour”, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has said, as he launched bilateral talks in Australia aimed at countering Beijing’s growing influence in the Asia-Pacific.

Chinese policy in the region will be a key point of discussion on Friday and Saturday as the US and Australian defence and foreign affairs ministers meet for annual, bilateral meetings.Austin and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in the Australian city of Brisbane late on Thursday in advance of the talks, which also will focus on a deal to provide Australia with a fleet of submarines powered by US nuclear technology.

“We’ve seen troubling [Chinese] coercion from the East China Sea to the South China Sea to right here in the Southwest Pacific,” Austin said before meeting his Australian counterpart, Richard Marles, on Friday.

“We’ll continue to support our allies and partners as they defend themselves from bullying behaviour,” the Pentagon chief added.