Latest news with #Shangri-La
Time of India
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Europe bristles at US proposals at Asian gathering; India-Pakistan hostility on show
SINGAPORE: The Shangri-La Dialogue security meeting in Singapore has long been marked by U.S.-China rivalry but Beijing's relative retreat at the weekend exposed a new faultline - tensions between the U.S. and Europe over Asia. Even as he warned in a speech on Saturday that China posed an "imminent" threat, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made clear he wanted Europeans to concentrate on European security as they boosted military budgets. "We would much prefer that the overwhelming balance of European investment be on that that as we partner there, which we will continue to do, we're able to use our comparative advantage as an Indo-Pacific nation to support our partners here," he said. Hegseth also noted the absence of his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun, as Beijing instead dispatched a low-level team of military scholars to the annual event, which attracts top defence officials, diplomats, spies and arms dealers from across the world. The other highlight of the event was the presence of high-powered military delegations from India and Pakistan after four days of intense clashes between the nuclear-armed neighbours that were halted by a ceasefire on May 10. Live Events The delegations, in full uniform and bristling with medal and service ribbons, were led by India's highest ranking military officer and Pakistan's chairman of the joint chiefs of staff. They pointedly kept out of each other's way in the corridors and meeting halls of the sprawling Shangri-La hotel. On engaging in Asia, at least some European nations signalled they would not be swayed by the U.S. exhortations. They insisted they would try to stay in both the Asian and European theatres, noting their deep links and vital trade flows as well as the global nature of conflict. "It is a good thing we are doing more (in Europe), but what I want to stress is that the security of Europe and the security of the Pacific is very much interlinked," said Europe's top diplomat Kaja Kallas. "If you are worried about China, you should be worried about Russia," Kallas said, underlining the importance of Chinese assistance to the Russian war effort in Ukraine and Moscow's deployment of North Korean soldiers. FRANCE'S ASIAN TIES French President Emmanuel Macron insisted that his nation remains an Indo-Pacific power, alluding to its enduring colonial presence in New Caledonia and French Polynesia and the basing of over 8,000 soldiers across the region. "We are neither China nor the U.S., we don't want to depend on either of them," Macron said at a press conference on Friday, outlining a "third path" coalition between Europe and Asia that avoided having to choose between Beijing and Washington. "We want to cooperate with both as far as we can, and we can cooperate for growth and prosperity and stability for our people and the world order, and I think this is exactly the same view of a lot of countries and a lot of people of this region," he said. Beyond the rhetoric, regional military attaches and analysts say the European regional presence - and ambitions - may not be easy to shift. Military deployments are mapped out over decades rather than months, and both commercial and defence relationships go back decades, some of them only rarely publicly acknowledged. The visit of a British aircraft carrier to Singapore later this month is part of a programme first mentioned by then-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in 2017 to stress British support for freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. The carrier visit in part reflects Britain's commitments under the 54-year-old Five-Power Defence Arrangement that links its military with counterparts in Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand. British ties with Australia have been bolstered with the recent three-way AUKUS submarine and advanced technology sharing agreement struck with the U.S. - a move that could see British submarines visiting Western Australia. Singapore meanwhile keeps 200 personnel in France operating 12 of its light combat aircraft while Britain also has a jungle training camp and helicopters in Brunei and a 1,200-strong Gurkha battalion, according to International Institute of Strategic Studies data. A report last month by the London-based IISS highlighted European defence firms' long-standing and expanding defence ties to Asia, even in the face of competition, particularly from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as regional budgets rise. "European companies, including Airbus, Damen, Naval Group and Thales, have a long-standing presence in Southeast Asia, and other European actors have established themselves in the market in the last decade, including Italy's Fincantieri and Sweden's Saab," the IISS study said. Saab is close to securing a deal with U.S. ally Thailand to supply its Gripen fighters, beating out Lockheed Martin's F-16s. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has reported that Asian defence spending rose 46% in the decade to 2024, reaching $629 billion. For Finnish officials at least, Hegseth's remarks resonated - it is Moscow rather than the Indo-Pacific that looms large for Helsinki given the country's long Russian border. "When Europe's defence is in a good shape, then you will have resources to do something more," Finnish Defence Minister Antti Hakkanen told Reuters. "But now all the European countries must do their main focus on European defence so that the United States can do a bigger share in the Indo-Pacific area," Hakkanen said.
NDTV
10 hours ago
- Business
- NDTV
Russia "Immediate" Danger, China "Sophisticated" Challenge: Key UK Report
London: UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer's government is set to publish the strategic defence review on Monday, which is expected to warn of challenges posed by Russia and China. The review, a 10-year plan for military equipment and services, will warn of the "immediate and pressing" danger posed by Russia, according to a report by British newspaper The Guardian on Saturday. The 130-page document, prepared by a team headed by former NATO secretary general George Robertson, will also describe China as a "sophisticated and persistent challenge", which at times has been willing to cooperate with Russia, and two smaller "regional disruptors" - Iran and North Korea, the report said. Since the war broke out in Ukraine in 2022, Russia has signed key deals with several of the West's adversaries, China, Iran and North Korea. The review, which was put together by Mr Robertson alongside Fiona Hill, a former US presidential advisor, and Richard Barrons, a former British commander, is also likely to question the size of the British army, which currently is around 1 lakh. On Saturday, the European Union's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, also said that Europe saw the China-Russia threat as the world's "greatest challenge". "When China and Russia speak of leading together changes not seen in a hundred years and of revisions of the global security order, we should all be extremely worried," Ms Kallas told an audience at the Shangri-La security conference in Singapore. "If you are worried about China, you should be worried about Russia," she added. Six New Weapons Factories In UK The UK government on Saturday said it will build at least six new factories producing weapons and explosives as part of a major review of its defence capabilities. The Ministry of Defence said that the Mr Starmer-led government will invest more than £1 billion in 'Digital Targeting Web' to "spearhead battlefield engagements, applying lessons learnt from Ukraine to the UK Armed Forces". "The hard-fought lessons from Putin's illegal war in Ukraine leave us under no illusions that future conflicts will be won through forces that are better connected, better equipped and innovating faster than their adversaries," Defence Secretary John Healey said in a statement. "We will give our Armed Forces the ability to act at speeds never seen before - connecting ships, aircraft, tanks and operators so they can share vital information instantly and strike further and faster," he added.
Channel 4
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Channel 4
US urges allies to boost defence amid China threat to Taiwan
Beijing poses a real and potentially imminent threat to Taiwan – so said US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth at the Shangri-La defence forum in Singapore. In turn, China accused the US of trying to provoke trouble in the Asia-Pacific region. Mr Hegseth also urged America's Asian allies to increase their defence spending, echoing the demand he made of European allies earlier this year. John Healey, the UK defence secretary, says he expects spending on national defence to reach 3% of GDP by the end of the next parliament. Credits: Reporter: Jonathan Rugman, Producer: Suzanne Lentini, Picture Editor: Matt Michael
eNCA
21 hours ago
- Business
- eNCA
Trump 'tough love' on defence better than no love: EU's Kallas
The European Union's diplomatic chief Kaja Kallas said Saturday the continent was beefing up defence spending after "tough love" from the Trump administration, as she called for stronger ties to counter China's "economic might". Speaking at the Shangri-La defence forum in Singapore, Kallas was responding to comments by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who called President Donald Trump's insistence on more military spending "tough love". "It's love nonetheless, so it's better than no love," Kallas quipped when asked later about Hegseth's speech. Brussels' relationship with Washington was not broken, Kallas stressed, saying she spoke to Hegseth on Friday. "You heard his speech. He was actually quite positive about Europe, so there's definitely some love there," she said. Trump has consistently pressed NATO countries to increase defence spending, asking for as much as five percent of GDP and saying Washington will no longer tolerate freeloaders. Kallas said "there are different countries in Europe and some of us have realised a long time ago that we need to invest in defence". "The European Union has shifted gear and reimagined our own paradigm as a peace project backed up with hard defence," she said. "It is a good thing we are doing more, but what I want to stress is that the security of Europe and the security of the Pacific is very much interlinked," she added. Kallas pointed to Ukraine, where North Korean soldiers were already operating and China was providing military hardware to Russia. "There were some very strong messages in the US secretary of defense speech regarding China," Kallas said. "I think again, if you are worried about China, you should be worried about Russia," she said. Kallas said the EU wanted to build "partnerships in our mutual interest" in the Indo-Pacific region, including in the field of defence and economy. But the EU was also bringing economic power to the table, she said. Kallas disagreed with suggestions that Washington should focus on the Indo-Pacific region and Europe concentrate on its own patch. "I really think if you look at the economic might of China, I think... the big countries or the superpowers sometimes overestimate their own strength," she said. China's economic dominance could only be tackled together with "like-minded partners like the United States, like the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea... and Singapore," said Kallas. Speaking earlier, Hegseth told delegates "we're pushing our allies in Europe to own more of their own security to invest in their defence". "Thanks to President Trump they are stepping up," he said. jhe/pdw/pst By Jan Hennop
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Full Speech: Hegseth's 'Regime Change' Message Amid China Warning To Asia Shangri-La Trump
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth delivered a blistering warning to China while speaking at the Shangri-La dialogue in Singapore on May 31. Hegseth said that the US stands ready to 'fight and win decisively' if China seeks military conflict over Taiwan. He added that the US would not instigate conflict with China or seek regime change, but in a significant declaration of policy, said, 'We will not be pushed out of this critical region." Watch this video to know more.
