US Vice President Dick Cheney on Friday expressed concerns about China’s military build-up and also questioned whether North Korea would follow through on its commitments in a recent nuclear deal.In a speech in Sydney, Cheney also stressed the importance of US forces remaining in Iraq to stop “jihadists” gaining a base from which to spread violence across the Middle East. “If our coalition withdrew before Iraqis could defend themselves, radical factions would battle for dominance of the country,” he said.Cheney arrived in Australia after talks in Tokyo with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in which China’s military rise and its growing clout were high on the agenda.Raising concern over China’s military build-up, he said: “Last month’s anti-satellite tests, China’s continued fast-paced military build-up, are less constructive and are not consistent with China’s stated goal of a ‘peaceful rise’.”“In light of North Korea’s missile test last July, it’s nuclear test in October and its record of proliferation and human rights abuses, the regime in Pyongyang has much to prove, yet this agreement represents the first hopeful step towards a better future for the North Korean people,” said Cheney.
