Warning to China
Harris insisted on Thursday that the United States “does not seek to conflict with Beijing,” but will “do everything we can to ensure that we maintain our commitment to our partners on issues such as the South China Sea.”
Four Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, have put forward competing claims on the waterways through which trillions of dollars of shipping trade passes each year.
China is accused of deploying military hardware, including anti-ship and surface-to-air missiles, and ignoring the 2016 International Tribunal’s ruling, which rejected its historical claims on most waters.
In Singapore, Harris said that Beijing “continued to intimidate and intimidate” in the South China Sea-prompting China to counterattack that the United States had committed its own “bullying and hegemonic behavior.”
The next day, Harris warned that the United States would “find new ways to put pressure on Beijing.”
