Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong, right, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken bump elbows ahead of their talks at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

By Kang Seung-woo

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated his bashing of China for its use of "coercion and aggression" on the international stage during his meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong in Seoul, Wednesday.

Blinken, along with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, arrived here earlier in the day for a so-called two-plus-two ministerial meeting with Chung and Defense Minister Suh Wook as well as their respective face-to-face meetings following their three-day visit to Japan.

Their Asian tour is the first Cabinet-level overseas trip of the Joe Biden administration that was inaugurated in January, a sign of the new U.S. government's commitment to reinvigorating alliances in Asia after four years of neglect under former President Donald Trump.

"It's critical that we stand up to the values especially now because we are witnessing a dangerous erosion of democracy around the world including in this region," Blinken said at the start of the dialogue at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"China is using coercion and aggression to systematically erode the economy in Hong Kong, undercut democracy in Taiwan, abuse human rights in Xinjiang and Tibet and asserting campaigns in the South China Sea that violate human rights law."

On Tuesday in Tokyo, Blinken also criticized Beijing's bullying of neighboring countries, adding that the United States "will push back if necessary when China uses coercion or aggression to get its way."

The repeated warnings from Blinken came as the Asia tour was seen as Washington's bid to win support from the two key allies for its campaign to counter Chinese influence in Asia. However, South Korea has been reluctant to join any U.S.-led anti-China coalition, including the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad), given that China is its largest-trading partner.