Pentagon chief urges Asian allies to invest in defense to deter China

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday reaffirmed Washington's commitment to deterring what he called Chinese aggression, using a key Asia security conference in Singapore to urge regional allies and partners to boost their defense spending in response to the threat.Delivering a speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue for the first time as Pentagon chief, Hegseth outlined the threat posed by China, including toward Taiwan, warning that "Beijing is credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific.""To be clear, any attempt by Communist…READ FULL ARTICLE