Although the Shangri-La Dialogue security meeting held in Singapore usually shows the rivalry between America and China, the meeting held this weekend revealed the growing unease among America and the Western alliance countries in relation to Asia. Despite warning on Saturday about a threat from China, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth revealed that America wants to focus on the security and safety of the region while Western alliance countries increase their military budgets.
America wants a large share of European investment to remain in that continent, and as a partner of the Indo-Pacific, America can continue to assist countries in that region, he said. Noting that China sent a low-level delegation to this meeting, Hegseth also expressed dissatisfaction about that. The senior defense officials who participated from India and Pakistan in this meeting revealed that the situation is still not cool. This is the first time that senior military officials from the two countries met on the same platform since India and Pakistan exchanged strong attacks on May 10.
However, European Union (EU) Foreign Minister Kaja Kallas gave a hint that the Western alliance will not bend to America’s indirect warning regarding Asia. According to her, even if only looking at trade relations, the EU has large interests in the Pacific region in addition to Europe. And if America considers China a threat, Russia’s threat should also be ranked equally, she said. French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters last Friday that while France has large interests in the Pacific region, it does not want to rely on either America or China. And he hinted at the idea of finding a “third way” instead of choosing between America and China to protect France’s interests in the Pacific, strengthening direct relations with Asia.
