SINGAPORE — China's defense minister accused the United States on Sunday of trying to "hijack" the support of countries in the Asia-Pacific region to turn them against Beijing, saying Washington is seeking to advance its own interests "under the guise of multilateralism."


Defense Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe lashed out at U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, rejecting his "smearing accusation" the day before at the Shangri-La Dialogue that China was causing instability with its claim to the self-governing island of Taiwan and its increased military activity in the area.


Austin had stressed the need for multilateral partnerships with nations in the Indo-Pacific, which Wei suggested was an attempt to back China into a corner.


"No country should impose its will on others or bully others under the guise of multilateralism," he said. " The strategy is an attempt to build an exclusive small group in the name of a free and open Indo-Pacific to hijack countries in our region and target one specific country — it is a strategy to create conflict and confrontation to contain and encircle others."


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China has been rapidly modernizing its military and seeking to expand its influence and ambitions in the region, recently signing a security agreement with the Solomon Islands that many fear could lead to a Chinese naval base in the Pacific, and breaking ground this past week on a naval port expansion Taiwan featured prominently in their discussions, according to the U.S.


On Sunday, Wei met with Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles, which the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported was the first high-level meeting between the two countries in more than two years.


Marles said it had been three years since Chinese and Australian defense ministers had met, and called the meeting a "critical first step."


"As Sec. Austin observed after his own meeting with Defense Minister Wei, it is really important in these times to have open lines of dialogue," he told reporters.


"Australia and China's relationship is complex and it's precisely because of this complexity that it is really important that we are engaging in dialogue right now."China accuses the U.S. of trying to hijack support in Asia

June 12, 20224:28 AM ET

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS