00:00Uncertainty over US policy, the Middle East conflict and rising tensions over Taiwan
00:05are likely to take centre stage at this week's Shangri-La Dialogue scheduled to begin tomorrow.
00:11US Secretary of War Pete Hexeth is expected to face questions over Washington's actions in Iran
00:18and whether the war could further strain US attention and commitments in Asia,
00:23according to Chong Jaiyan, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore.
00:28So, given the greater volatility in US policy, the questions of commitment will be amplified.
00:35And a third point I think to note is that there have been some moves as a response to the
00:42US attention being drawn elsewhere
00:45to sort of be more active on the defence front, especially among US allies, Japan, Australia, and then the Philippines,
00:53and to some extent, South Korea.
00:54So, I suppose we could also see if these countries decide that there is some sort of carve-out role
01:02for them
01:02and whether they intend to extend engagement to countries like India and so on.
01:08So, that's something to watch as a result of the conflict in the Middle East and in Europe as well.
01:14The Shangri-La Dialogue, the region's premier defence forum, runs from Friday to Sunday in Singapore.
01:20It draws a mix of top defence officials, senior military officers, diplomats, weapons makers, and security analysts.
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