Asia pivot

China’s state-run media have declared Australia a threat to its national security, after Australia finalized a 25-year military pact with the United States.

President Barack Obama’s trip to four Asian nations is aimed in large part to reassure skeptical partners that the announced US pivot to Asia is real. But squabbling among America’s Asian allies apart, the fate of a long-gestating trade pact might prove a serious indicator of the success or failure of US policy.