00:00Top defense officials from around the world meet in Singapore for the annual Shangri-La Dialogue.
00:05The summit, held by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies,
00:10is a space for major powers to have conversations and issue warnings.
00:15In a keynote speech, Vietnamese President Tô Lam called for the enforcement of international law to confront global challenges.
00:25We recognize competition as inevitable, but it must be within the bounds of the law, transparency and self-restraint.
00:33Today's global crisis is not an inevitable consequence that we are forced to accept.
00:38Meanwhile, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth again called on U.S. partners in the Asia-Pacific to put more
00:44money and effort into their own defense.
00:46For too long, the security of this region has rested disproportionately on American military power.
00:53While many of our allies and partners allowed their own defense capabilities to atrophy.
00:57The U.S. is pushing several regional partners, including Taiwan, to boost their defense spending.
01:02Still, when answering questions after his speech, Hegseth said future arms sales to Taiwan would depend on U.S. President
01:09Donald Trump.
01:10Hegseth's comments come just weeks after Trump framed these sales as a negotiating chip with China after his own summit
01:17with its leader Xi Jinping.
01:19Despite this, China's presence at the Shangri-La summit was low-key, with Beijing only sending lower-level representatives from
01:26its national defense university and navy instead of its defense chief.
01:31Some say Beijing may have missed an opportunity.
01:34We've also seen China engage in the biggest conventional military build-up in the world since the end of the
01:40Second World War.
01:41And that has not happened with a strategic reassurance for other countries.
01:45And again, that's a point that we make to China when we meet with China.
01:49All of that, you know, I guess highlights how important it is to have opportunities for dialogue.
01:54Be it tensions in the South China Sea, the Taiwan Strait, or between the two Koreas, the Asia-Pacific presents
02:01numerous security challenges, and its governments don't often see eye to eye.
02:05And while events like this one in Singapore provide a venue for discussion, it's not always clear whether dialogue alone
02:11can make a difference.
02:13Andy Xie and Tiffany Wong for Taiwan Plus.
02:15Andy Xie and Tiffany Wong for Taiwan Plus.
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