Moves by Washington to strengthen military ties in the Pacific are not aimed at containing China, a senior US defence official said Thursday, after holding talks with her Chinese counterpart. US Under Secretary of Defence for Policy Michele Flournoy said she had sought to assure China’s Ma Xiaotian over moves including the deployment of US Marines in Australia. “We assured General Ma and his delegation that the US does not seek to contain China, we do not view China as an adversary, but these posture changes were first and foremost about strengthening our alliance with Australia,” she told reporters in Beijing. Wednesday’s talks marked the first high-level meeting of US and Chinese defence officials since Washington angered Beijing in September by announcing an arms deal with Taiwan.
HUNDREDS STRIKE IN LATEST CHINA LABOUR PROTEST: Hundreds of workers protested for a fifth straight day on Thursday at a Japanese plant in southern China, a company official said, in the latest labour unrest in the country’s manufacturing hub. Nearly 1,000 workers have downed tools since Sunday at disk drive maker Hailiang Storage Products Co, blocking the entrance and accusing bosses of “bullying” Chinese workers, state media and a rights group said.
