The Russian invasion of Ukraine has given a taste of a “possible world of tyranny and turbulence”, the US Secretary of Defense said on Saturday at a forum devoted to security in Canada.
Lloyd Austin, in one of his strongest speeches to date, added that China, like Russia, wanted a world where “might makes right”.
He made the remarks just days after talks on Monday between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“Nuclear Proliferation Spiral”
The US Secretary of Defense also warned of the risk of nuclear proliferation if Russian President Vladimir Putin ends up imposing his views.
“Other autocrats like Putin are watching what’s going on. And they could very well conclude that getting nuclear weapons would give them their own hunting license.”he said.
“This could lead to a dangerous spiral of nuclear proliferation.”