China accuses US's Hegseth of ‘vilifying' remarks at security forum
China has objected to Hegseth calling it a threat in the Indo-Pacific, the ministry added, describing his comments at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Saturday as 'deplorable' and "intended to sow division.'
'Hegseth deliberately ignored the call for peace and development by countries in the region, and instead touted the Cold War mentality for bloc confrontation, vilified China with defamatory allegations, and falsely called China a 'threat',' the ministry said on its website.
'The United States has deployed offensive weaponry in the South China Sea and kept stoking flames and creating tensions in the Asia-Pacific, which are turning the region into a powder keg,' the ministry added in the statement.
Hegseth had called on allies in the Indo-Pacific region, including key security ally Australia, to spend more on defense after warning of the 'real and potentially imminent' threat from China.
Asked about the call to boost defense spending, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government had pledged an extra A$10 billion to defense.
'What we'll do is we'll determine our defense policy,' he told reporters on Sunday, a transcript of his remarks showed.
As part of Washington's longstanding defense ties with the Philippines, the US military this year deployed Typhon launchers that can fire missiles to hit targets in both China and Russia from the island of Luzon.
China and the Philippines contest sovereignty over some islands and atolls in the South China Sea, with growing maritime run-ins between their coast guards as both vie to patrol the waters.
The ministry also warned the United States not to 'play with fire' on the Taiwan question.
In his speech at Asia's premier forum for defense leaders, military officials and diplomats, Hegseth said any attempt by China to conquer Taiwan 'would result in devastating consequences.'
China has vowed to 'reunify' with the separately governed island, by force if necessary. Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, saying only the island's people can decide their future.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
2 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Pentagon pulls back more National Guard troops and leaves behind 250 in Los Angeles
The Pentagon said Thursday it is ending the deployment of all but 250 National Guard troops that were originally sent to Los Angeles to deal with protests over the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered 1350 National Guard members to leave this week. The rest will remain to protect federal personnel and property according to the statement attributed to Sean Parnell chief Pentagon spokesperson. Roughly 4000 National Guard soldiers and 700 Marines were deployed to Los Angeles in early June over the objections of state and local officials. Half of the Guard were pulled back roughly two weeks ago and the Marines were ordered to leave a few days later. 'We greatly appreciate the support of the more than 5000 Guardsmen and Marines who mobilized to Los Angeles to defend Federal functions against the rampant lawlessness occurring in the city,' Parnell said. Local leaders have contested the presence of federal troops in the city blaming them for inflaming tensions in the region and said their presence was unnecessary. Mayor Karen Bass called the departure of more troops 'another win for Los Angeles' in a post Wednesday night on X. The presence of Guard troops in the city had been mostly limited to two locations with federal buildings in Los Angeles including the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement office and detention facility downtown. Some soldiers have been protecting federal agents during immigration raids. National Guard troops recently accompanied federal authorities with guns and horses at a July 7 operation at MacArthur Park a neighborhood with large Mexican Central American and other immigrant populations that ended abruptly. A vast majority of the troops remained at the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos during their time in Southern California and were not seen deployed in Los Angeles. Demonstrations in the city and the region in recent weeks have largely been small scattered impromptu protests around immigration arrests. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement that President Donald Trump's political theater backfired. 'The women and men of our military deserve more than to be used as props in the federal government's propaganda machine,' Newsom said. Newsom sued the federal government in June over the deployment of the National Guard arguing that Trump violated the law when he activated the troops without notifying him. Newsom also asked the judge for an emergency stop to troops helping carry out immigration raids. While a lower court ordered Trump to return control of the Guard to California the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked the judge's order.
Saudi Gazette
3 days ago
- Saudi Gazette
YouTube to be included in Australia's social media ban for children under 16
BRISBANE — Australia has picked a fight with the world's largest video platform by backtracking on an earlier promise to exclude YouTube in its social media ban for children under 16. The Labor government said Wednesday the site, which is owned by Google's parent company Alphabet, will be subject to the same rules as other leading platforms – Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and X – under legislation due to come into effect in December. The ban puts the onus on social media platforms to prevent children under 16 from having an account on their sites, or risk fines of nearly 50 million Australian dollars ($32 million). A YouTube spokesperson said the decision to include it in the ban 'reverses a clear, public commitment' from the government to treat the site as an educational tool. 'We will consider next steps and will continue to engage with the government,' the spokesman said, omitting any comment on the status of reported legal threats. YouTube Kids won't be included in the ban because it doesn't allow users to upload videos, or comment on them. Speaking Wednesday, Communications Minister Anika Wells likened the ban to teaching children to swim – a basic life skill in Australia where many suburban homes come with a swimming pool.'It is like trying to teach your kids to swim in the open ocean, with the (rip currents) and the sharks, compared to at the local council pool,' she said.'We can't control the ocean, but we can police the sharks, and that's why I will not be intimidated by legal threats when this is a genuine fight for the well-being of Australian kids.'The government said the decision to include YouTube was influenced by a survey released by Australia's independent online regulator, the eSafety Commission, this month that found 37% of children surveyed had reported seeing harmful content on the content includes sexist, misogynistic or hateful ideas, dangerous online challenges or fight videos, or content that encourages unhealthy eating or exercise habits.'YouTube uses the same persuasive design features as other social media platforms, like infinite scroll, like autoplay and algorithmic feed,' Wells told Parliament Wednesday.'Our kids don't stand a chance, and that is why I accepted the eSafety (Commission) recommendation that YouTube should not be treated differently from other social media platforms.'The government passed what it has called 'world-leading' legislation last year, providing a 12-month buffer to figure out how it was going to part of its research, the government commissioned age assurance verification trials to test the limits of different technologies to inform the rules it'll impose on social media companies.A preliminary report released in June reached 12 findings, including that age verification can be done in a 'private, robust and effective' way. But it also found there was no 'single ubiquitous solution' that would suit all cases, nor one that was 100% report also said 'concerning evidence' had emerged that platforms were 'over-anticipating the eventual needs of regulators about providing personal information for future investigations.''Some providers were found to be building tools to enable regulators, law enforcement or Coroners to retrace the actions taken by individuals to verify their age which could lead to increased risk of privacy breaches due to unnecessary and disproportionate collection and retention of data,' the preliminary report concerns have been raised by critics of the plan – while others say it will limit options for isolated and vulnerable children who rely on social platforms for has acknowledged the ban won't be perfect.'Kids, God bless them, are going to find a way around this. Maybe they're all going to swarm on LinkedIn. We don't know,' she and other platforms say they're already taking steps to protect children week, YouTube announced new trials of AI in the United States to interpret a 'variety of signals' to determine if a user is under 18.'These signals include the types of videos a user is searching for, the categories of videos they have watched, or the longevity of the account,' YouTube said in a users are determined to be under 18, personalized ads will be deactivated, well-being tools will be activated, and repetitive viewing will be limited for some kinds of content, the company have been lobbying against the Australian ban – appealing to the government and Australian parents to rethink the has recently run ads on Facebook in the country touting the platform as an educational tool. 'From fishing to chef skills, Aussie teens are learning something new every day on TikTok,' says one online revealed Wednesday that YouTube had dispatched a representative of the Wiggles, the hugely popular Australian children's entertainment group, to argue against its inclusion in the ban.'The Wiggles are a treasured Australian institution. But like I said to them, you're arguing that my 4-year-old twins right to have a YouTube login is more important than the fact that four out of 10 of their peers will experience online harm on YouTube, and they might be two of those four,' Wells told CNN affiliate 9 News, citing a recent survey by the eSafety Commission.'I just didn't find that argument ultimately persuasive.'Almost 3,500 Australian children, ages 10-17, took part in the 'Keeping Kids Safe' survey between December 2024 and February out of four reported seeing harmful content. — CNN
Arab News
3 days ago
- Arab News
Australia bans YouTube accounts for children under 16 in reversal of previous stance
MELBOURNE: The Australian government announced YouTube will be among the social media platforms that must ensure account holders are at least 16-years-old from December, reversing a position taken months ago on the popular video-sharing service. YouTube was listed as an exemption in November last year when the Parliament passed world-first laws that will ban Australian children younger than 16 from platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and X. Communications Minister Anika Wells released rules Wednesday that decide which online services are defined as 'age-restricted social media platforms' and which avoid the age limit. The age restrictions take effect Dec. 10 and platforms will face fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for 'failing to take responsible steps' to exclude underage account holders, a government statement said. The steps are not defined. Wells defended applying the restrictions to YouTube and said the government would not be intimidated by threats of legal action from the platform's US owner, Alphabet Inc. 'The evidence cannot be ignored that four out of 10 Australian kids report that their most recent harm was on YouTube,' Wells told reporters, referring to government research. 'We will not be intimidated by legal threats when this is a genuine fight for the wellbeing of Australian kids.' Children will be able to access YouTube but will not be allowed to have their own YouTube accounts. YouTube said the government's decision 'reverses a clear, public commitment to exclude YouTube from this ban.' 'We share the government's goal of addressing and reducing online harms. Our position remains clear: YouTube is a video sharing platform with a library of free, high-quality content, increasingly viewed on TV screens. It's not social media,' a YouTube statement said, noting it will consider next steps and engage with the government. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Australia would campaign at a United Nations forum in New York in September for international support for banning children from social media. 'I know from the discussions I've had with other leaders that they are looking at this and they are considering what impact social media is having on young people in their respective nations,' Albanese said. 'It is a common experience. This is not an Australian experience.' Last year, the government commissioned an evaluation of age assurance technologies that was to report last month on how young children could be excluded from social media. The government had yet to receive that evaluation's final recommendations, Wells said. But she added the platform users won't have to upload documents such as passports and driver's licenses to prove their age. 'Platforms have to provide an alternative to providing your own personal identification documents to satisfy themselves of age,' Wells said. 'These platforms know with deadly accuracy who we are, what we do and when we do it. And they know that you've had a Facebook account since 2009, so they know that you are over 16.' Exempt services include online gaming, messaging, education and health apps. They are excluded because they are considered less harmful to children. The minimum age is intended to address harmful impacts on children including addictive behaviors caused by persuasive or manipulative platform design features, social isolation, sleep interference, poor mental and physical health, low life-satisfaction and exposure to inappropriate and harmful content, government documents say.
