New Delhi, Sept. 10 -- Washington - US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun that Washington "does not seek conflict" with Beijing, a reassurance that clashes with the Pentagon's expanding military footprint across the Asia-Pacific. The call, described by both sides as candid, arrives as the United States layers new deployments, joint drills, and basing access [.]

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from The Eastern Herald....