00:02U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday dismissed claims that Washington is turning
00:07its back on the Asia-Pacific region, reaffirming America's commitment to its allies at the
00:12Shangri-La Dialogue Security Summit in Singapore.
00:15Responding to remarks by Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi at the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue,
00:22Hegseth said the United States remains firmly engaged in the region and is working closely
00:27with partners to strengthen collective security.
00:30People want to conflate that we have global obligations with turning of our backs to this
00:35region and that's why I've made more trips here than anywhere else and have met and will
00:39continue to meet with individual countries and in collective settings like this to demonstrate
00:44we are quietly but very strongly working by, with and through allies based on our mutual commitments
00:50to strengthen our capabilities out here.
00:53Hegseth said the United States would prioritize cooperation with what he described as model
00:59allies that have responded positively to calls for a more balanced sharing of global security
01:05responsibilities. He also praised Indo-Pacific partners for increasing defense spending, contrasting
01:12their response with that of some European allies. The Trump administration has urged partner nations
01:17to allocate at least 3.5% of their gross domestic product to defense. During his address on the United
01:25States' strategy for peace in the Indo-Pacific, Hegseth also commended Malaysia's leadership in deploying
01:31an ASEAN observer team to the Thailand-Cambodia border, describing the move as a significant contribution
01:38to regional peace and stability. He said the initiative reflected ASEAN's growing
01:43willingness to take collective responsibility for maintaining security and reducing tensions in
01:48the region through diplomacy and cooperation. In October 2025, Thailand and Cambodia signed the
01:55KL Peace Accord on the sidelines of the 47th Asian Summit in Kuala Lumpur. The agreement was signed by
02:03Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charn Virakul and Cambodian Prime Minister Han Manet and witnessed by Prime
02:10Minister Datuk Sri Anwar Ibrahim in his capacity as ASEAN Chair as well as U.S. President Donald Trump.
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