US secretary of state opens his tour of south-east Asia with a speech pledging to defend US partners and ‘rules-based order’

US secretary of state Antony Blinken has used a visit to Indo-Pacific to urge China to cease “aggressive actions” in the region, as Washington seeks to bolster alliances against Beijing.

President Joe Biden’s administration is trying to reset relations and reassert its influence in Asia after the turbulence and unpredictability of the Donald Trump era.

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Source: The Guardian