James Crabtree is executive director of IISS-Asia in Singapore. He is author of "The Billionaire Raj."
Last week's defense cooperation pact struck by Australia and Japan marks the latest in a series of recent deals between U.S. allies in Asia as they grapple with how to manage China's rising power. Building more such arrangements is now a clear objective of U.S. policy, creating what National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan describes as a new "latticework of alliances and partnerships" that allow Washington's friends to work more closely together around the region.
