China's "alarming" actions do not match its rhetoric about promoting peace and prosperity in the region, Australia 's defence minister said on Friday after a Chinese navy ship was tracked sailing through the country's exclusive economic zone.Defence Minister Peter Dutton listed China's militarisation of the South China Sea, recent aggression towards Taiwan and the introduction of a national security law in Hong Kong as examples of China's actions being at odds with its rhetoric. "We're all familiar with the frequent claims of the Chinese government that it is committed to peace, cooperation and development," Dutton said in a speech in Canberra. "And yet we bear witness to a significant disconnect between the words and the actions. We've watched very closely as the Chinese government has engaged in increasingly alarming activities. Australia and its ally the United States branded the move "economic coercion".In September, a new security pact between Australia, the United States and Britain, dubbed AUKUS, was widely viewed as an attempt to shore up regional military muscle in the face of China's growing presence.

Source: Economic Times November 26, 2021 19:27 UTC