Sharjah24 – AFP: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the United States stands solidly behind Australia, which has faced growing pressure from China. Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne says that such pressure "requires us to respond and to increase resilience" but adds that talks with China are not off the table.
Commenting on this, Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State, said, "Beijing has seen over the past months that Australia will not back down and the threats of economic retaliation and pressure simply will not work. I also want to reiterate what I said before: the United States will not leave Australia alone on the field or, better yet, on the pitch in the face of these pressure tactics."
Marise Payne, Australian Foreign Minister also pointed out, "Today, we also discussed strategic competition. We discussed the competition of China at a number of levels that requires us to respond and to increase resilience. This does not mean that there are not constructive areas for engagement with China. Australia continues to seek dialogue with China without preconditions. "
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