U.S. says ready for crisis with China

Munich (The Reference) – U.S. Defense Secretary, Mark Esper, has said that Afghan President, Ashraf Ghani, is committed to reaching a full settlement to the conflict with the Taliban in a peaceful and diplomatic manner.

He added on Friday that he talked to Ghani and that the Afghan president told him that he would be ready to work with the U.S. to put an end to the war that has been raging on in Afghanistan for 18 years now.

Esper noted that the U.S. had notified NATO member states about the latest developments in talks with the Taliban.

He added at a roundtable discussion in Munich in the presence of U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, that competition with China is the toughest challenge facing the U.S. at present.

This means that, he said, the U.S. had to be ready for any crisis that can emerge in relations with China or for any major wars.

He said his country did not seek confrontation with China, but wanted to increase cooperation.

Unfortunately, he said, we do not know whether China will be more transparent in the future.

Esper defended the Pentagon’s decision to channel billions of dollars from the U.S. fighter jet program for the construction of a wall on the border with Mexico.