China Slams Hegseth Over Taiwan Remark

China yesterday warned the United States it "should not play with fire" over Taiwan and said it had lodged representations with Washington over comments made by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.

- By MICHAEL PUNONGBAYAN

The US secretary of defense used his speech at an annual security forum on Saturday to warn that China was "credibly preparing" to use military force to upend the balance of power in Asia. He added that the Chinese military was building the capabilities to invade Taiwan and "rehearsing for the real deal." In a statement released just after midnight, the Chinese foreign ministry said it had "lodged solemn representations with the US side" over Hegseth's comments, adding that it "strongly deplores" his remarks.

"Hegseth deliberately ignored the call for peace and development by countries in the region, and instead touted the Cold War mentality for bloc confrontation, vilified China with defamatory allegations, and falsely called China a 'threat,' "Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.

She asserted that no country in the world deserves to be called a hegemonic power other than the US itself, which she alleged is also the primary factor undermining peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific.