U.S. and Chinese military officers have resumed talks that were frozen after former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in the summer of 2022, a development U.S. officials have said is key to keeping the growing competition between the two great powers from turning into direct conflict.
Quick Read
- Resumption of U.S.-China Military Talks: After a freeze triggered by Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan visit in 2022, U.S. and Chinese military officers have restarted discussions, a critical step in managing the competitive relationship between these two major powers and preventing escalation into direct conflict.
- Deputy-Level Pentagon Talks: Discussions included plans for future military officer meetings, with a possible meeting between U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun being considered.
- Health Update on Lloyd Austin: Austin, currently hospitalized due to prostate cancer treatment complications, was not present at the recent meeting. Dong Jun, a former naval commander, recently replaced Li Shangfu as China’s Defense Minister.
- Background on Li Shangfu: Li, sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018 for purchasing Russian weapons, was replaced in late 2023. No U.S. defense secretary has visited China since Jim Mattis in 2018.
- Recent High-Level Military Communications: The recent in-person meetings followed a call between Gen. CQ Brown Jr., U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman, and his Chinese counterpart, Gen. Liu Zhenli, reestablishing senior military communication channels that had been dormant since August 2022.
- Leadership of the Chinese Delegation: Maj. Gen. Song Yanchao, responsible for international military cooperation at China’s Central Military Commission, led the Chinese delegation and met with Michael Chase from the Pentagon.
- Topics of Discussion: The Pentagon reported discussions on operational safety in the Indo-Pacific and reaffirmed the U.S.’s commitment to the ‘One China’ policy under the Taiwan Relations Act. Future defense and military engagements at various levels were also a key topic.
- Bilateral Agreement from Biden-Xi Summit: The decision to resume these talks stemmed from an agreement between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at their San Francisco summit in November last year.
- U.S. Defense Official’s Remarks: Prior to the meetings, a U.S. defense official emphasized the significance of the talks but acknowledged substantial differences between the two militaries, especially concerning China’s stance on Taiwan.
- Impact of Pelosi’s Taiwan Visit: Pelosi’s visit in 2022, viewed by China as a challenge to its claim over Taiwan, significantly strained U.S.-China relations. It was a notable visit, being the highest-level U.S. official visit to Taiwan in 25 years.
- Challenges in U.S.-China Military Communication: In recent years, the Pentagon has struggled to maintain open lines of communication with the Chinese military. Increased intercepts between U.S. and Chinese forces and Beijing’s reluctance to engage in military-to-military talks have heightened risks of miscalculations leading to potential crises or conflicts, as per the Pentagon’s latest report on China’s military capabilities.
The Associated Press has the story:
US and Chinese military officers resume talks as agreed by Biden and Xi
Newslooks- WASHINGTON (AP) —
U.S. and Chinese military officers have resumed talks that were frozen after former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in the summer of 2022, a development U.S. officials have said is key to keeping the growing competition between the two great powers from turning into direct conflict.
During the deputy-level talks at the Pentagon, the two parties discussed setting future meetings between their military officers, including potentially scheduling a future meeting between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and newly appointed Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun.
Austin is currently hospitalized due to complications from prostate cancer treatment. He had not been scheduled to attend Tuesday’s meeting. Dong is a former naval commander who was appointed in late December after his predecessor, Li Shangfu, was removed from office.
Li was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018 for buying Russian weapons. After he was named the defense minister in March 2023, the U.S. did not lift the sanctions. No U.S. defense secretary has visited China since Jim Mattis visited in 2018.
The face-to-face meetings follow a call between Gen. CQ Brown Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and his counterpart Gen. Liu Zhenli, several weeks ago, which marked the first senior military communications between the U.S. and China since August 2022.
China’s delegation at the meeting was headed by Maj. Gen. Song Yanchao, deputy director of the Central Military Commission for international military cooperation. He met with Michael Chase, the Pentagon’s deputy assistant secretary of defense for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia.
While administrative in nature, the two-day talks do allow both sides to raise policy concerns. In a readout of the meeting, the Pentagon said that Chase talked about operational safety in the Indo-Pacific and the United States’ commitment to “our longstanding ‘One China’ policy, which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act,” the Pentagon said in a readout of the meeting.
“The Department will continue to engage in active discussions with PRC counterparts about future engagements between defense and military officials at multiple levels,” the Pentagon said in the readout.
The agreement to resume the military talks was reached between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping during their summit in San Francisco last November.
In a briefing with reporters prior to the meetings, a senior U.S. defense official said while the resumption of the talks is a good sign, “we’re clear-eyed” that significant differences remain between the two militaries, including the implications of China’s movement toward a reunification with Taiwan, which could commit the U.S. to aid in Taiwan’s defense. The official spoke to reporters on the condition of anonymity to provide details ahead of the meeting.
Pelosi’s 2022 visit to Taiwan angered China because it claims the island as part of its territory and views visits by foreign government officials as recognition of the island’s sovereignty. She was the highest-ranking American official to visit Taiwan in 25 years.
For the past two years, the Pentagon has faced increased difficulty contacting the Chinese military as the number of intercepts between U.S. and Chinese aircraft and ships sharply rose. According to the Pentagon’s most recent report on China’s military power, Beijing “denied, canceled or ignored” military-to-military communications and meetings with the Pentagon for much of the past two years. The report warned that the lack of such talks “raises the risk of an operational incident or miscalculation spiraling into crisis or conflict.”
