The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tillerson slams China, seeks deeper India ties
Secretary of state says Beijing has rattled world order.
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday took a swipe at China, saying it had undermined international law and norms, as he called for greater military and economic ties between the United States and India.
“We’ll never have the same relationship with China, a nondemocratic society, that we can have with India,” Tillerson said in answering a question after a speech on India at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
In pointed criticism of Beijing, which the United States is urging to be tougher on North Korea over its nuclear weapons program, Tillerson made an unflattering comparison between the ways India and China have progressed over the past two decades.
“China, while rising alongside India, has done so less responsibly, at times undermining the international, rules-based order — even as countries like India operate within a framework that protects other nations’ sovereignty,” he said. “China’s provocative actions in the South China Sea directly challenge the international law and norms that the United States and India both stand for.
“The United States seeks constructive relations with China,” he added. “But we won’t shrink from China’s challenges to the rules-based order, or where China subverts the sovereignty of neighboring countries, and disadvantages the U.S. and our friends.”
Tillerson’s remarks came in advance of his upcoming trip to South Asia, including a visit to New Delhi. He echoed remarks by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis before his trip to India last month, characterizing security as one of the “key strategic pillars” of the U.S.-India relationship.
Tillerson said the Trump administration seeks to “dramatically deepen” ties with India. He cited India’s role as the world’s most populous democracy and said democracies like India and the United States should be the anchors of security in the Pacific.
He noted India has been designated a major defense partner, which will allow the United States to sell it more defense hardware with sophisticated capabilities that Washington zealously guards, granting access only to its most trusted allies.
“In this period of uncertainty and angst, India needs a reliable partner on the world stage,” Tillerson said. “I want to make clear — with our shared values and vision for global stability, peace and prosperity, the United States is that partner.”
Tillerson made only passing reference to Pakistan, India’s neighbor and regional rival, saying Washington expects Pakistan “to take decisive action against terrorist groups based there.”
His remarks came as Trump and his senior aides are preparing for a 12-day trip to five Asian nations, including China, that will focus on security and trade. The administration has begun to take a harder line with Beijing, as Trump has grown increasingly frustrated by China’s inability, or unwillingness, to exert greater influence on North Korea to stop its nuclear and ballistic missile tests.
Last month, Trump signed an executive action aimed at granting the U.S. Treasury Department greater authority to sanction foreign companies that do business with Pyongyang, and he said China’s central bank was enacting a similar crackdown on banks in that country, which is North Korea’s biggest trading partner. But experts said it was unclear whether China would follow through.