US to Lead 'Restoration of Liberal Order Among Nations' - Pompeo

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has stated that when treaties are broken, the violators must be "confronted, and the treaties must be fixed or discarded".

The United States will lead the "restoration of the liberal order among nations" with the help of other democracies, according to the Secretary of State.

"We are acting to preserve, protect, and advance an open, just, transparent and free world of sovereign states. This project will require actual, not pretend, restoration of the liberal order among nations. It will require an assertive America and leadership from not only my country but of democracies around the world," Mike Pompeo said in a foreign policy speech.

Pompeo also noted that nothing can replace the nation-state as the guarantor of democratic freedoms and national interests.

"In the finest traditions of our great democracy, we are rallying the noble nations to build a new liberal order that prevents war and achieves greater prosperity", he stated.

The Secretary of State is currently in Brussels, Belgium, attending a summit of foreign ministers of NATO member states, intended to discuss the main security challenges that the alliance faces, including the situation in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.

Beijing's Economic Development Led to More Political Constraints, Provocations

China's economic development did not lead to regional stability but, on the contrary, resulted in more political constraints and regional provocations, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated.

"China's economic development did not lead to the embrace of democracy and regional stability. It led to more political repression and regional provocations", Pompeo said at the German Marshall Fund event in Brussels.

The US Secretary of State also accused Beijing of "routinely exploiting loopholes in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules" and stealing intellectual property.

READ MORE: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg Arrives at Meeting in Brussels (VIDEO)

Pompeo's statement comes after the US and Chinese leaders' working dinner on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Argentina on 1 December, during which US President Donald Trump agreed to postpone increasing the tariff on $200 billion in Chinese imports to 25 percent, initially planned to go through on January 1. China, in turn, agreed to purchase a "substantial amount" of US agricultural, energy and industrial products, among others, to reduce the trade imbalance between the two countries, according to the White House.

While in Belgium, Pompeo has met with senior officials, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michael discussing bilateral cooperation on major issues, including nonproliferation.