Hegseth at Shangri-La, even as US sounds ‘alarm’ on China

Hegseth also assessed defence-related relations with Japan, South Korea, ASEAN and Australia in the same address, while reaffirming Washington’s view that the Indo-Pacific was the most consequential region in the world and that the security of the region rested “disproportionately” on US military power. India’s senior representative at the Singapore forum is Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, who earlier on the sidelines outlined India’s vision for a “stable, secure and inclusive Indo-Pacific” at an academic-policy engagement attended by Indian High Commissioner to Singapore Shilpak Ambule, per the Ministry of Defence. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is hosting the 2nd Australia-India Defence…