The defense ministers of China and the United States hold talks for the first time in 18 months

There are several points of contention between Washington and Beijing.

Washington:

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun via video conference call on Tuesday, the first substantive talks between the superpowers’ defense ministers in nearly 18 months.

The United States has been working to strengthen defense cooperation with allies in the Asia-Pacific region to counter China’s growing influence, but it also wants to maintain channels of communication with Beijing to prevent tensions from getting out of control.

“The two officials discussed U.S.-China defense relations and regional and global security issues,” the Pentagon said in a statement, referring to the People’s Republic of China.

Following talks between the two sides in recent months, “Secretary Austin emphasized the importance of continuing to open channels of military exchange between the United States and the People’s Republic of China,” the statement said.

Austin also “reaffirmed that the United States will continue to fly, sail, and operate safely and responsibly wherever international law allows,” and “stressed the importance of respecting freedom of navigation on the high seas guaranteed by international law, particularly in the South China Sea.”

Beijing said Dong used the talks as an opportunity to call on the two countries to strengthen “trust”.

“China and the United States should … value peace and stability,” Dong told Austin, according to reports in Beijing.

“The military field is the key to stabilizing the development of bilateral relations and preventing major crises,” Dong said.

But he also warned the United States over the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own.

The Ministry of National Defense reported that “Dong Jun emphasized that the Taiwan issue is at the core of China’s core interests.”

He also urged the United States to respect its position on the South China Sea, which Beijing claims nearly all of and where tensions have heightened in recent months.

The United States should recognize China’s firm position, respect China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea, and take practical actions to safeguard regional peace.

Austin’s last significant interaction with his Chinese counterpart occurred in November 2022, when he met with Wei Fenghe in Cambodia.

Wei was subsequently replaced by Lee Sang-bok, who shook hands and spoke briefly with Austin at a defense conference in Singapore last June but did not hold a formal meeting with the Pentagon chief.

A senior U.S. defense official told reporters that China was unwilling to agree to talks between Austin and Li Keqiang while Li was under U.S. sanctions — an obstacle that was removed last year when Li was replaced by Dong.

Tensions between China and the United States

There are multiple points of contention between Washington and Beijing, particularly over the democratically self-governed island of Taiwan, which China claims as part of its territory and has said it would not rule out using force to bring it under its control.

Beijing stopped cooperating with the United States on issues, including defense talks, in August 2022 to express displeasure over then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island, but U.S. President Joe Biden and China President Xi Jinping reached an agreement at the summit in August 2022. Discussions will resume in November.

The dispute over the South China Sea, which Beijing claims nearly all of, is another potential flashpoint, with clashes between Chinese and Philippine ships raising fears of a wider conflict.

The United States has also highlighted numerous incidents in recent years in which Chinese warplanes and ships have operated in an unsafe manner around U.S. aircraft and ships.

Austin has repeatedly emphasized the importance of military-to-military communication as a means to avoid possible conflict, and military officials from the two countries have had multiple interactions recently despite tensions between the two countries.

They include a December call between top U.S. military officer Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown and Gen. Liu Zhenli, as well as talks this month between military officials in Washington and Beijing on security issues in interactions between the two countries’ armed forces.

The senior US defense official said the Pentagon and China “are continuing to discuss future engagements between our senior defense and military leaders,” adding: “These contacts provide us with opportunities to prevent competition from evolving by talking candidly. into a conflict.”

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