China Blasts U.S., Urges Halt to ‘Conflict Incitement’ in Asia-Pacific After Hegseth’s Remarks

China’s Foreign Ministry sharply criticized U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Sunday, alleging he was promoting a “cold war mentality.” This followed Hegseth’s remarks that China poses a real and potentially “imminent” threat. The ministry’s online statement urged the U.S. to “stop inciting conflict” in the Asia-Pacific region.

The statement emphasized that “China urges the U.S. to fully respect the efforts of countries in the region to maintain peace and stability, stop deliberately destroying the peaceful and stable environment cherished by the region, and stop inciting conflict and confrontation and escalating tensions in the region.”

This response came after Hegseth’s comments at a defense conference in Singapore on Saturday, where he warned about China’s ambitions in Asia, stating that it “hopes to dominate and control too many parts of this vibrant and vital region.”

“China seeks to intimidate you in your own waters,” Hegseth told defense ministers and security officials, adding, “China’s military harasses Taiwan.”

Hegseth asserted that “it has to be clear to all that Beijing is credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific.” He suggested that other nations should upgrade their militaries and increase defense spending in preparation. “We are not going to sugarcoat it—the threat China poses is real and it could be imminent,” he stated.

China’s Foreign Ministry countered that Taiwan is an “internal affair” and accused the U.S. of overstepping by “stoking flames” in the South China Sea.

“No country in the world deserves to be called a hegemonic power other than the U.S. itself, who is also the primary factor undermining the peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific,” the ministry declared.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) maintains that Taiwan, which has a democratically elected government, is a breakaway province of China illegally controlled by separatists, seeking annexation or a “reunification.”

While the U.S. doesn’t officially recognize Taiwan diplomatically, it considers Taiwan a key ally and is committed to providing “available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability.”

Tensions between Taiwan and China have escalated recently, coinciding with increased military activity by both the U.S. and China in the South China Sea. However, Hegseth clarified in his Singapore speech that President Donald Trump “does not seek war.”

“We do not seek regime change, nor will we instigate or disrespect a proud and historic culture. We will be ready, but we will not be reckless,” Hegseth said regarding U.S. intentions. “Instead, we seek peace. But we must ensure that China cannot dominate us—or our allies and partners.”

In addition to geopolitical tensions, China and the U.S. are engaged in a trade war involving reciprocal tariffs. On May 12, both countries agreed to significantly reduce tariffs for a 90-day period. The U.S. planned to lower import taxes on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%, while China agreed to reduce its tariffs from 125% to 10%. Although these measures were intended to take effect by May 14, progress has stalled since trade talks in Geneva.

On May 30, Trump accused China of “violating” its commitments.

Trump stated via , “Two weeks ago China was in grave economic danger! The very high tariffs I set made it virtually impossible for China to trade into the United States marketplace,” also claiming there was “civil unrest” because of the high levies.

China responded by stating that the U.S. has “discriminatory restrictions” in its export controls within the chip industry.

According to China U.S. embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu, “Recently, China has repeatedly raised concerns with the U.S. regarding its abuse of export control measures in the semiconductor sector and other related practices. China once again urges the U.S. to immediately correct its erroneous actions, cease discriminatory restrictions against China and jointly uphold the consensus reached at the high-level talks in Geneva.”

Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon suggested on Friday that China isn’t America’s biggest threat, and that the U.S. should focus on its own internal issues.

Speaking at the Reagan National Economic Forum in Simi Valley, Calif., Dimon said: “China is a potential adversary—they’re doing a lot of things well, they have a lot of problems. But what I really worry about is us. Can we get our own act together? Our own values, our own capability, our own management.”