00:00We are charting a new course for our alliances and partnerships,
00:03one that is grounded in the realities of power and interests.
00:07It is a course that will leave America stronger, our allies and partners more capable,
00:12and the Pacific region more stable and secure.
00:16The foundation of this new approach is moving away from a model of dependency
00:21and toward one of true partnership,
00:23embracing a perspective that our partners in Asia have understood for decades.
00:30Now, perhaps because of distance or perhaps because of the hard-learned lessons of history,
00:35the default Asian lens on America has been clearer and far more pragmatic than in other regions.
00:43Our partners in Asia have long understood that the bedrock of a durable partnership
00:48is not based on idealistic values but on the concrete alignment of national interests.
00:54There is undeniable strength in this clarity,
00:57and it is what makes our Pacific allies and partners such reliable counterweights
01:02in the face of regional threats.
01:04When our interests align, we act together with focused resolve.
01:10When our interests diverge, we adjust pragmatically,
01:14without the drama or the moralizing.
01:18I think Western Europe might take note.
01:23This is a mindset we fully embrace.
01:25The era of the United States subsidizing the defense of wealthy nations is over.
01:30We need partners, not protectorates.
01:33We seek alliances built on shared responsibility, not dependency.
01:37This is the maturation of our alliances in a new era.
01:42It's a vision that puts our alliances on a sustainable footing,
01:47ensuring they are fit for the challenges of this century, not the last.
01:53This shift is not a matter of choice.
01:55It is a matter of strategic prudence.
01:58The national defense strategy makes clear that the old, toothless, utopian,
02:04and globalist course of foreign policy was headed for a disaster
02:09that all changes under President Trump.
02:12Our approach is one of flexible, practical realism
02:16that looks at the world with a clear-eyed perspective
02:19that is essential for serving vital interests.
02:22And nowhere is this clarity more important than in the Pacific.
02:27This region has profound implications for U.S. security and prosperity.
02:31It's the world's largest and most dynamic market area.
02:34It's why our national defense strategy directs the Department of War
02:38to set the military conditions required
02:40to achieve a lasting and favorable balance of power in the Pacific region.
02:45When we look across the region today,
02:47there is rightful alarm regarding China's historic military buildup
02:52and the expansion of its military activities in the region and beyond.
02:56We share a clear-eyed assessment of that security environment
03:01and a mutual understanding that a Pacific dominated by any hegemon
03:06would unravel the regional balance of power
03:09and undermine the equilibrium we all seek to preserve.
03:12The Department of War is working with the utmost focus
03:15to prevent any such unraveling.
03:18The Department of War is working with the Department of War
Comments