"China is contesting the American-led democratic alliance system in East Asia. It’s contesting it militarily in the South and East China Seas. It’s contesting it via the development of a blue water navy and ballistic missiles, trying to push the American carrier task forces way out beyond the first island chain in the western Pacific. We cannot afford, and we should never accept, being dominated militarily by China in the Indo-Pacific. We’ve got to hold our position. No one wants to fight China, but we have an absolute right— working with Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Japan, India, Singapore, and Vietnam—to make sure that the Chinese are respecting the rule of law, maritime transit, and the sovereign territorial rights of other countries in that region."
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Academics from the United StatesPeople from BuffaloUnited States Under Secretaries of State for Political AffairsUnited States Permanent Representatives to NATOUnited States Ambassadors to China
Original Language: English
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"The SAIS Review Interviews Nicholas Burns" (10 June 2020)
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/R._Nicholas_Burns
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R. Nicholas Burns
Robert Nicholas Burns (born January 28, 1956) is an American diplomat and academic who has served as the United States ambassador to China from 2022 to 2025. Burns has had a 25-year career in the State Department, and served as United States Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs and the United States ambassador to Greece. As under secretary, he oversaw the bureaus responsible for U.S. policy in each region of the world and served in the senior career Foreign Service position at the depa
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