Hegseth Meets Asian Counterparts Amid Tensions

At the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ meeting in Kuala Lumpur, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth held a “good and constructive” meeting with Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun, stressing U.S. concerns about China’s actions in the South China Sea, around Taiwan and toward U.S. allies while saying the U.S. does not seek conflict but will defend its interests; no formal readout was released. The encounter followed President Trump’s summit with Xi Jinping in South Korea, where the leaders broadly agreed to reduce trade tensions and stabilize relations. Hegseth is also scheduled to meet Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on the sidelines to ease strains from punitive U.S. tariffs, review India’s planned purchases of U.S. military hardware—including six Boeing P‑8I aircraft—and discuss a refreshed India‑U.S. defence cooperation framework. Indian and U.S. officials said the talks could pave the way for a bilateral visit and come as both sides see an opening to rebuild ties after India reduced Russian oil imports following recent U.S. sanctions. Hegseth has also engaged other regional counterparts at the forum, including a press event with Japan’s defence minister.