China is attending the Asian defence forum with a "token" delegation
Analysts and diplomats are already branding it a "missed opportunity" to ease tensions on the continent, particularly regarding the Taiwan issue.
The Asian defence forum is taking place this weekend in Singapore, but the People's Republic of China has sent only a delegation of academics, in contrast to the meeting of defence ministers and leaders from the other countries.
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles commented in an interview with Reuters today that "We have seen China embark on the world's largest conventional military rearmament since the end of the Second World War, and that has not provided a strategic guarantee for other countries.
"The rules-based world order is under pressure in the Indo-Pacific," he added, referring to the international system of laws, agreements and shared institutions established after the Second World War. "This is a time when we are looking at all the relationships we have around the world, where we have common ground and where we can work together, and where we can, we do."
Chinese officials declined to comment to the media.
