U.S. Defense Secretary arrives in Singapore for talks on China's rising military power

Photo: U.S. Defense Secretary arrives in Singapore for talks on China's rising military power

Rumsfeld's attendance at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue defense forum comes barely a week after the Pentagon issued a report saying China is rapidly extending its military reach through purchases of advanced weaponry and refined tactics.

The weekend conference,  which opens Friday evening with an address by Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong,  will also discuss U.S.-Asia security relations, the rise of India, maritime security cooperation, counterinsurgency and regional security concerns.

China's rise is widely seen as a challenge to U.S. military supremacy in Asia, underscoring Beijing's longtime rivalry with Japan, conflicting claims over islands in the South China Sea, and control over Taiwan, the self-governing island that China calls part of its territory but which Washington is legally bound to help defend.

Rumsfeld is due to address the forum on Saturday. Other keynote speakers include Indian Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Indonesian Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono. China's highest ranking participant is a deputy chief of the Foreign Ministry's Asian section.

Despite that low-level representation, conference organizer Tim Huxley said China's growing influence will be a major issue before the forum.

Some 23 countries are participating in the three-day meeting, the fifth since the setting up of the dialogue, named after the Singapore hotel where it is held. Saturday and Sunday are devoted to bilateral discussions and round-table meetings, the AP reports.

Concerns over China's military rise were accented by a 14 percent increase in Beijing's declared defense spending this year to 283.8 billion yuan (US$35.3 billion; euro28.6 billion).

Outside estimates of China's true spending are up to three times that amount, based on the country's heavy purchases of submarines, missiles, fighter planes and other high-tech weapons, mainly from Russia.