U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth called on his country’s allies in Asia to do more to counter military threats from North Korea and China, essentially asking South Korea and Japan to shoulder more of their own defense costs. 

In an interview with Japan’s Asahi Shimbun on Sunday, Hegseth urged America’s allies and friendly nations to look to European countries as an example, stressing that those countries are set to spend five percent of their gross domestic product on defense.

The U.S. defense chief, who spoke with the Japanese daily while attending the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, emphasized that threats from China are Washington’s most important issue of interest.

The U.S. official expressed Washington’s support for Tokyo’s efforts to bolster the capabilities of its Self-Defense Force, adding that defense spending should reflect the level of danger from Beijing.  

During the annual defense forum in Singapore, Hegseth urged his country’s Asian allies to increase defense spending and do their part as “force multipliers,” pledging a continued U.S. commitment to the Indo-Pacific region if allies “share the burden.”