BEIJING- China urges Australia to do more to enhance mutual trust and facilitate regional security and stability, rather than making the situation worse, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Thursday.
Hua made the remarks in response to Australian Minister for Defence Linda Reynolds’ Tuesday announcement that Australia will develop hypersonic missiles with the United States in a bid to counter China and Russia, “which are developing similar weapons.”
Hua said the United States in recent years took the lead in developing hypersonic weapons, which had resulted in an intensified arms race for such weapons and seriously affected global strategic stability.
Australia has closely followed the United States and used the so-called “China threat” and “Russia threat” as excuses for its military expansion, which added a factor of instability to regional and global security, she said. “China is concerned about this.”
The spokesperson said China consistently pursues a national defense policy that is defensive in nature, and the development of its military power is not aimed at any specific country.
China does not have global combat strategy and plan like what the United States has, and has neither intention of targeting Australia nor interest in launching an arms race with other countries, Hua said.
“We urge Australia to assess its own security interests objectively, and do more to enhance mutual trust among countries in the region, and facilitate regional security and stability,” said Hua.
