Glossing over disagreements, the defense chiefs from Japan and France on Saturday welcomed U.S. leadership in the Asia-Pacific to manage the nuclear ambitions of North Korea and maintain regional peace. "The ongoing presence of the United States in the Indo-Pacific continues to under-guard the rules-based order of the region. Continued U.S. leadership in the region ensures "rules-based order" or freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, the defense chiefs said. "In short, the rules-based regional order is under challenge," she said. Now is the time to form a scrum to protect the rules-based order."

Source: ABC News June 03, 2017 09:11 UTC