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Tuesday, 19 March 2024

Pompeo seeks to shore up support among Asian allies

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Pompeo seeks to shore up support among Asian allies
Pompeo seeks to shore up support among Asian allies

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday visited Tokyo to meet with some of Washington's closest allies in Asia, Japan, Australia and India, to shore up support against what the United States says is China's dangerous and growing regional influence.

Gloria Tso reports.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with some of Washington's closest allies in Tokyo on Tuesday (October 6) He's there to shore up support against what the U.S. sees as China's dangerous growing influence.

The visit, which was supposed to include trips to Mongolia and South Korea, was cut short after U.S. President Donald Trump was diagnosed with COVID-19.

It's Pompeo's first trip to East Asia since July 2019 and comes as ties between the United States and China have fallen to their worst in decades.

The meeting was held with foreign ministers of the so-called Quad group of nations, the United States, Australia, India and Japan.

Early on in the day, Pompeo praised Japan's new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

"The United States has every reason to believe he will strengthen our enduring alliance in his new role." But while most Asian allies have been pleased with Washington's toughness on China, not all of them have welcomed Trump and Pompeo's highly charged rhetoric, and remain wary of going too far in antagonising Beijing.

Experts say the Quad meeting is unlikely to yield a specific action plan.

But the gathering itself may serve as a warning to China and play to its fears that the grouping might one day grow into a formalised structure like NATO.

China has denounced the Quad as an attempt to contain its development.

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