China warns Taiwan, The Philippines its restraint is reaching outer ‘limits’

China’s Defence Minister delivered a hawkish address in Singapore as its relations with neighbours and major powers continue to dominate security talks.

Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun speaks during the defence summit in Singapore on Sunday. Picture: AFP

Chances of a peaceful reunification with Taiwan were being “eroded” by Taiwanese separatists and external forces, China’s Defence Minister said on Sunday as he warned of “limits” to Beijing’s ­restraint in the South China Sea and over the ­deployment of ballistic missiles in the Asia-Pacific region.

Dong Jun warned arms sales to Taiwan were a “red line” for China, in a hawkish address to Singapore’s Shangri La Defence dialogue aimed at Taipei and ­Manila, which have been boosting defence ties with the US in the face of Beijing’s growing military muscle.

“China has maintained sufficient restraint in the face of rights infringements and provocation, but there are limits to this,” he told the annual security meeting attended by defence officials from around the world, including a surprise visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“China stays committed to peaceful reunification. However, this prospect is increasingly being eroded by separatists for Taiwan independence and foreign forces. We will take resolute actions to curb Taiwan independence and make sure such a plot never succeeds.”

Mr Zelensky met US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin early on Sunday to discuss Ukraine’s ­defence needs and later expressed gratitude to President Joe Biden “for making an important decision regarding defensive strikes with American weapons” on Russian territory.

He also met Indonesian president-elect Prabowo Subianto, among others, to drum up attendance at Switzerland’s Global Peace Summit later this month, warning that “time is running out” to ensure a just peace for Ukraine.

It was China and its relationships with its neighbours and other major powers that often dominated conversation at a weekend conference bookended by veiled threats and red lines.

Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr outlined his own country’s outer limits in its escalating conflict with Beijing in the disputed South China Sea.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky greets Indonesian Defence Minister and president-elect Prabowo Subianto in Singapore. Picture: AFP

China claims almost the entire disputed waterway, through which trillions of dollars of goods are shipped annually, dismissing rival claims from The Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan, Brunei and Vietnam, and a 2016 international tribunal ruling that its claims have no legal basis. In recent months China’s Coast Guard has deployed water cannon against Philippine boats in seas within The Philippines’ exclusive economic zone, and have also collided with Philippines vessels, resulting in injuries to Filipino troops.

Mr Marcos warned that any act by China that resulted in the death of a ­Philippines soldier would come “very close to what we define as an act of war”.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr delivers a speech during the Shangri-La Dialogue summit in Singapore. Picture AFP

“We would have crossed the Rubicon. Is that a red line? Almost certainly. And we will respond.”­

Tensions have risen under Mr Marcos, who is looking to long-term treaty allies Australia and the US, and also Japan for support.

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles met Mr Dong on Saturday after calling out Beijing in his summit speech for its recent confrontations with Australian naval forces, bullying of The Philippines and provocation of Taiwan.

A day earlier, Mr Dong spoke with Mr Austin, where the two agreed to resume military-to-military communications.

Defence Minister Richard Marles in Singapore on Saturday. Picture: AFP

Mr Austin also expressed concern over Chinese military ­activity near Taiwan, and urged Beijing not to use Taiwan’s political transition – “part of a normal, routine democratic process” – as a pretext for “coercive measures”, a Pentagon spokesman said.

Mr Dong, meanwhile, said the US military’s April deployment of a mid-range missile system to northern Philippines was “severely damaging regional security and stability”.

China staged war games last month around Taiwan – which it insists belongs to the mainland – in response to the inauguration of President Lai Ching-te, whom it regards as a “separatist”.

Mr Austin sought to reassure summit guests on Saturday that the Indo-Pacific region remained hugely important to Washington.

“The United States can be ­secure only if Asia is secure,” he said. “That’s why the United States has long maintained our presence in this region.”

Additional reporting: AFP