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US defence secretary Pete Hegseth has warned China is rehearsing an invasion of Taiwan

Beijing regards Taiwan as a renegade province of China.

The Shangri-La Dialogue is Asia's top security forum and has historically housed high-level talks between the US and China. However, China defence minister Dong Jun is skipping the event in Singapore. At this year's forum, the US secretary of defence, Pete Hegseth, has accused China of seeking regional domination, but says that the United States had always been an Indo-Pacific power and was "here to stay".

Also in the programme: We discuss the possibility of flying cars here in the UK after the first successful 'flying taxi' test flight in Europe and Mexico is set to become the first country in the world to elect all of its magistrates and judges.

Joining presenter Julian Worricker are Timandra Harkness, a British writer and broadcaster, and Simon Robinson, executive editor of the Reuters news agency in London.

(Picture: US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth (L) and Singapore's Minister for Defence Chan Chun Sing shake hands at Shangri-la Dialogue Defence Summit in Singapore, 31 May 2025. Photo by HOW HWEE YOUNG/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

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50 minutes

Last on

Sat 31 May 2025 07:06GMT

Broadcast

  • Sat 31 May 2025 07:06GMT