{"id":84361,"date":"2025-10-31T08:56:41","date_gmt":"2025-10-31T08:56:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/?p=84361"},"modified":"2025-11-03T08:59:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-03T08:59:17","slug":"u-s-secretary-of-war-pete-hegseth-engages-asian-defense-leaders-reaffirms-peace-through-strength-vision-in-indo-pacific","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/2025\/10\/31\/u-s-secretary-of-war-pete-hegseth-engages-asian-defense-leaders-reaffirms-peace-through-strength-vision-in-indo-pacific\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth engages Asian defense leaders, reaffirms \u2018peace through strength\u2019 vision in Indo-Pacific"},"content":{"rendered":"

KUALA LUMPUR, Friday, October 31, 2025 : United States Secretary of War Pete Hegseth held a series of high-level meetings with defense leaders from across Asia on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defense Ministers\u2019 Meeting Plus (ADMM+), reaffirming Washington\u2019s commitment to regional stability and its \u201cpeace through strength\u201d strategy in the Indo-Pacific.<\/p>\n

In one of the most closely watched engagements, Secretary Hegseth met with China\u2019s Minister of National Defense, Admiral Dong Jun, for what he described as a \u201cgood and constructive\u201d discussion. The meeting followed their earlier virtual dialogue held on September 9.<\/p>\n

HEGSETH SAID HE EMPHASIZED THE IMPORTANCE OF MAINTAINING A \u201cBALANCE OF POWER\u201d IN THE INDO-PACIFIC WHILE VOICING U.S. CONCERNS OVER CHINA\u2019S ACTIONS IN THE SOUTH CHINA SEA, AROUND TAIWAN, AND TOWARD U.S. ALLIES AND PARTNERS IN THE REGION.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cThe United States does not seek conflict,\u201d he said, \u201cbut we will continue to stoutly defend our interests and ensure we have the capabilities in the region to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n

The U.S. defense chief also met with Malaysia\u2019s Minister of Defense, Khaled bin Nordin, to commemorate the signing of the Kuala Lumpur (KL) Accords \u2014 a new framework aimed at enhancing maritime security cooperation and promoting peace through deterrence. Calling Khaled \u201ca clear-eyed leader,\u201d Hegseth said he looks forward to welcoming him to the Pentagon next year.<\/p>\n

In another major development, Hegseth and Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh signed a 10-year U.S.\u2013India Defense Framework Agreement, advancing what he described as \u201ca cornerstone for regional stability and deterrence.\u201d The agreement includes deeper coordination on intelligence sharing, technology cooperation, and defense innovation.<\/p>\n

The U.S. official also held bilateral meetings with Indonesia\u2019s Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro, Thailand\u2019s Minister of Defence General Nattaphon, and Cambodia\u2019s Deputy Prime Minister Tea Seiha.\"\"<\/p>\n

Hegseth reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to strengthening interoperability, enhancing defense industrial cooperation, and expanding joint training across new strategic domains. He also announced that the United States and Cambodia would restart their premier bilateral military exercise, signaling a renewed defense engagement between the two countries.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe KL Accords and our engagements across Southeast Asia underscore President Trump\u2019s unwavering commitment to peace through strength,\u201d Hegseth said, adding that the U.S. would continue to work \u201crelentlessly to reestablish deterrence in the South China Sea and strengthen alliances across the Indo-Pacific.\u201d<\/p>\n

Defense analysts view the series of meetings as a major diplomatic push by Washington to bolster defense partnerships amid rising tensions in the region and to assert its leadership role in maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KUALA LUMPUR, Friday, October 31, 2025 : United States Secretary of War Pete Hegseth held a series of high-level meetings with defense leaders from across Asia on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defense Ministers\u2019 Meeting Plus (ADMM+), reaffirming Washington\u2019s commitment to regional stability and its \u201cpeace through strength\u201d strategy in the Indo-Pacific. In one of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":84362,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[72,71,67,65,75,58],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-84361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-asia-pacific","category-china","category-diplomacy","category-foreign-missions","category-usa","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84361","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84361"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84361\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":84364,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84361\/revisions\/84364"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84362"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}