Antony Blinken says China appearing ‘more aggressively abroad’: Report

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated in an interview that aired on Sunday that China had just lately acted “more aggressively abroad” and was behaving “increasingly in adversarial ways.”
Asked by CBS News’ “60 Minutes” if Washington was heading towards a army confrontation with Beijing, Blinken stated: “It’s profoundly against the interests of both China and the United States to, to get to that point, or even to head in that direction.”
He added: “What we’ve witnessed over the last several years is China acting more repressively at home and more aggressively abroad. That is a fact.”
Asked concerning the reported theft of a whole bunch of billions of {dollars} or extra in U.S. commerce secrets and techniques and mental property by China, Blinken stated the Biden administration had “real concerns” concerning the IP challenge.
He stated it sounded just like the actions “of someone who’s trying to compete unfairly and increasingly in adversarial ways. But we’re much more effective and stronger when we’re bringing like-minded and similarly aggrieved countries together to say to Beijing: ‘This can’t stand and it won’t stand.’”

The Chinese Embassy in Washington didn’t instantly reply on Sunday to a request for touch upon Blinken’s interview.
On Friday, President Joe Biden’s administration stated China had fallen brief on its commitments to guard American mental property within the “Phase 1” U.S.-China commerce deal signed final yr.
The commitments have been a part of the sweeping deal between former President Donald Trump’s administration and Beijing, which included regulatory adjustments on agricultural biotechnology and commitments to buy some $200 billion in U.S. exports over two years.
Blinken arrived in London on Sunday for a G7 international ministers assembly the place China is among the points on the agenda.
In the interview, Blinken stated the United States was not aiming to “contain China” however to “uphold this rules-based order – that China is posing a challenge to. Anyone who poses a challenge to that order, we’re going to stand up and – and defend it.”
Biden has recognized competitors with China as his administration’s biggest international coverage problem. In his first speech to Congress final Wednesday, he pledged to keep up a powerful U.S. army presence within the Indo-Pacific and to spice up U.S. technological growth.

Blinken stated he speaks to Biden “pretty close to daily.”
Last month, Blinken stated the United States was involved about China’s aggressive actions in opposition to Taiwan and warned it could be a “serious mistake” for anybody to attempt to change the established order within the western Pacific by pressure.
The United States has a long-standing dedication beneath the Taiwan Relations Act to make sure that self-governing Taiwan has the flexibility to defend itself and to maintain peace and safety within the western Pacific, Blinken stated.
Taiwan has complained over the previous few months of repeated missions by China’s air pressure close to the island, which China claims as its personal.