U.S. to deter China through strength, not confrontation: Pete Hegseth

Washington, Dec. 6 (CNA) United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Saturday that one of the U.S. military's main priorities is to deter China "through strength, not through confrontation," as he reiterated Washington's stance that it has no intention of changing the Taiwan Strait status quo.

Speaking at the annual Reagan Defense Forum held in Simi Valley, California, Hegseth outlined the Department of War's priorities under President Donald Trump.

"First, defending the US homeland and our hemisphere. Second, deterring China through strength, not confrontation. Third, increased burden sharing for us, allies and partners. And fourth, supercharging the U.S. defense industrial base," he said.

The defense chief said the Washington-Beijing relations under Trump are "better and stronger" as the administration seeks "stable, peace, fair trade, and respectful relations with China."

"This line of effort is based on flexible realism, not naivete, an approach aimed not at domination, but rather at a balance of power," Hegseth said.

Repeating what he said at the Shangri-La Dialogue attended by military chiefs in Singapore earlier this year, Hegseth said the U.S. is not trying to "strangle China's growth."

"We're not trying to dominate or humiliate them, nor are we trying to change the status quo over Taiwan," he said.

U.S. interests in the Indo-Pacific are "significant, but also scoped and reasonable," he said.

"This means ensuring none of our allies are vulnerable to sustained, successful military aggression," said Hegseth.

In his address, he also reiterated Trump's push to ensure U.S. allies pay more for their own defense.

"Our allies are not children," he said. "We can and should and must expect them to do their part."

Amid the Trump administration's repeated call for Washington's partners around the world, including Taiwan, to increase defense spending, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) has announced a plan to allocate US$40 billion for a special defense budget, and to increase defense spending to at least 3 percent of Taiwan's GDP by 2026, and 5 percent by 2030.