United States opposes 'destabilising' behaviour by China in Indo-Pacific – Pentagon chief

The United States opposes destabilising behaviour by China in the Indo-Pacific, U.S. Defence Secretary Mark Esper said on Sunday. "We stand firmly against a disturbing pattern of destabilising behaviour by China," Esper told reporters in Sydney.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday decried "decades of bad behaviour" from China that have hampered free trade, laying out a case at a Southeast Asian forum for Washington's escalating trade war with Beijing. Esper and Pompeo met with their Australian counterparts in Sydney on Sunday.

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