The two arrived in Seoul on Wednesday for talks. Blinken said China was acting aggressively and repressively, and Austin called for a stronger alliance with South Korea to better address security concerns over China and North Korea. "The U.S.-South Korea alliance is ever more important because of the unprecedented threats from China and North Korea," Austin said at the start of talks with South Korean Defense Minister Suh Wook, according to the Yonhap news agency. He called the alliance a "linchpin" for peace, security and prosperity in Northeast Asia, and for a free and open Indo-Pacific region and beyond. On Thursday, Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan are scheduled to meet Foreign Minister Wang Yi and the foreign affairs chief of China's ruling Communist Party, Yang Jiechi, in Anchorage, Alaska.