Australia ? Vice President Dick Cheney said today that China’s recent anti-satellite weapons test and a rapid military buildup were “not consistent” with its stated aim of a peaceful rise as a global power.

In a speech during a visit to Australia, Cheney praised China for playing an “especially important” role in six-nation negotiations that recently resulted in a deal with North Korea to eventually end its nuclear weapons programs.

“Other actions by the Chinese government send a different message,” Cheney told the Australian-American Leadership Dialogue.