SINGAPORE: The Chinese government's top diplomat, State Councillor Wang Yi, said on Saturday the response by Beijing to US trade measures were necessary and legitimate, a day after announcing retaliatory tariffs on US$60 billion worth of US goods.
Speaking on the sidelines of a Southeast Asian conference also attended by the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Wang also said the United States was putting military pressure on countries in the region, including China.
AdvertisementWang told reporters at the forum that China welcomed, and was willing to work with, the United States to help with faster development and better security in the region.
He added, however, that the United States had been sending "massive strategic weaponry" into the South China Sea and the region as a show of military might that puts pressure on China and other regional countries.
"That is the biggest force behind militarisation in this region," he said.
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