The US and China displayed their military strength in Indonesia and Thailand by holding war games over the weekend, as the rival superpowers worked to strengthen their influence in south-east Asia.China dispatched fighter jets to Thailand on Sunday in a joint air force exercise called Falcon Strike 2022 that Beijing’s defence ministry said would “enhance mutual trust and friendship”.
The Thailand exercises coincided with the conclusion of two weeks of war games between the US and Indonesia, marking the largest version of the annual Garuda Shield live-fire drills since starting in 2009. Japan, Australia and Singapore also joined for the first time.
The drills in south-east Asia come as tension between Beijing and Washington in the region is rising. US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in August aggravated China, which claims the territory as its own.