Mattis heads to Asia

military activity are continuing, but even active-duty troops will not be paid until a deal is reached to reopen the US government. WASHINGTON, D.C.: US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Sunday (Monday in Manila) began a one-week trip to Asia, hoping to strengthen defense cooperation with Indonesia and Vietnam as regional Chinese military power looms ever larger.

to see it remain peaceful, so all the nations that use it and live here are prosperous,” Mattis told reporters accompanying him on a military plane headed to the region.

In Jakarta, Mattis is to meet on Tuesday with President Joko Widodo and Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu for talks on maritime cooperation.

The vast Indonesian archipelago reaches from the Indian Ocean to

In Vietnam, Mattis and his counterparts are set to discuss freedom of movement in the South China Sea, a region over which Beijing has extended its dominance in recent years, militarizing several small, disputed islands.

Washington hopes to draw a contrast between its own seen as aggressively moderniz Russia, which has annexed parts of Georgia and Ukraine.

“The point I want to make is, we a sovereign voice and sovereign de else should have a veto authority over their economic, their diplomatic or their security decisions,” Mattis said.

“We respect these countries.”