Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles said China's decision to send only academics to Asia's biggest defence forum is a missed opportunity at a time when countries need more strategic reassurance from Beijing.
Speaking ahead of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Marles called the meeting an incredible chance for defence ministers and policymakers to exchange ideas and build relationships.
China has the biggest conventional military buildup since World War Two, but this has not come with strategic reassurance for other countries, he noted.
For the second year, Chinese Defence Minister Dong Jun skipped the meeting. Beijing plans to send a delegation of experts and scholars from the People's Liberation Army instead.
Marles, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Japan's Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, and counterparts from France, Britain, Malaysia, the Philippines, and others are attending.
Australia is expanding defence ties across the Asia-Pacific, but the alliance with the U.S. remains the cornerstone of Canberra's security policy, Marles said.
