The Obama administration plans to conduct more military exercises in Asia and take other steps to expand its influence in the region, amid concerns about China's buildup, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said.
Training exercises have been a source of friction in the past with North Korea as well as Beijing, whose military buildup and maritime assertiveness in the region's waters have alarmed Washington and its regional partners.
The stepped-up military activity, to be planned with U.S. allies in the region, would be a component of what officials describe as a global 'rebalancing' of U.S. interests as Washington shifts more of its attention to the Pacific region while winding down the war in Iraq and beginning to withdraw American troops from Afghanistan.
In his first trip to Asia as Pentagon chief, Mr. Panetta promised to strengthen the U.S. military presence in the region despite budget woes at home.
Mr. Panetta didn't say whether the U.S. planned to deploy more aircraft carriers or station more troops permanently in the region. The U.S. has six carriers based in the Pacific.
Mr. Panetta has ruled out cutting U.S. forces in the region, but also made clear that the Obama administration expects its Asian allies to play a larger role to keep Chinese ambitions in check.
'It is very important that we work with our partners in the Pacific region to try to develop their capabilities so that they, too, can improve the security that they provide to this region,' he said.
He cited U.S. efforts to strengthen security cooperation with South Korea, Australia and other allies as a way to 'more effectively address the many shared challenges that we face' and to 'encourage China's emergence as a responsible and positive partner.'
Mr. Panetta said expanding the security alliance with Japan was a critical part of the Obama administration's realignment in Asia.
Also this week, U.S. and North Korean diplomats held two days of meetings in Geneva on Pyongyang's nuclear program, though no agreement was reached on formally resuming negotiations.
美国国防部长帕内塔(Leon Panetta)说，出于对中国军事实力的担忧，奥巴马政府计划在亚洲开展更多军事演习，并采取其它措施以扩大美国在该地区的影响力。
美国在亚洲进行军事演练过去一直是它与朝鲜以及与北京的矛盾来源。中国在亚洲海域的军事实力和海事问题上的强硬态度向华盛顿及其地区同盟拉响了警报。
美国官员会说，加强军事活动(将与美国亚太盟友共同计划)将是美国利益全球“再平衡”的一个组成部分，此时华盛顿开始把更多注意力转向太平洋地区，逐步撤出伊拉克战争，并从阿富汗撤军。
这是帕内塔第一次以美国国防部长的身份访问亚洲，他承诺要加强美国在亚洲地区的军事存在，尽管美国国内存在预算危机。
帕内塔没有透露美国是否打算在亚洲部署更多航空母舰或增加长期驻军。美国目前在太平洋上有六艘航空母舰。
帕内塔排除了削减美国亚洲驻军的可能性，但他明确表示，奥巴马政府期望美国的亚洲盟友在抑制中国军事野心方面能发挥更大作用。
帕内塔说，很重要的一点是，我们应与太平洋地区的伙伴共同合作，设法发展它们的军事能力，这样它们也可以尽自己的能力提高地区安全。
帕内塔还提到美国加强与韩国、澳大利亚及其它盟友安全合作的努力，说这是为了更有效地应对我们面对的很多共同挑战，鼓励中国成为一个负责、积极的伙伴。
帕内塔说，扩大与日本的安全同盟是奥巴马政府在亚洲重新调整的关键组成部分。
另外，美国与朝鲜外交官本周在日内瓦就平壤的核计划举行了为期两天的会谈，不过在正式重启谈判方面没有达成一致。
整理：徐浩凯