China "greatest challenge," ex-U.S. defense chief tells Taiwan's Tsai

China poses more challenges than Russia for the West and democratic countries should cooperate in defending Taiwan, former U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Tuesday during a meeting with the self-governed island's president Tsai Ing-wen.Before hearing the statement, which is almost certain to draw ire from Beijing, Tsai told Esper at her office in Taipei that the "expansion of authoritarianism and Russia's invasion of Ukraine have all reminded us that democratic partners must bolster the strength of their alliances to jointly defend a peace."While Tsai stopped short of naming China, Es…READ FULL ARTICLE