(Washington) The American and Chinese defense ministers spoke on Tuesday for the first time in a year and a half, the Pentagon announced, a new sign of the desire of the two superpowers to maintain dialogue despite still very strong tensions.
The exchange comes as the United States seeks to strengthen defense cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region to combat China’s growing influence, while maintaining open lines of communication with Beijing to prevent an escalation of tensions.
US Defense Minister Lloyd Austin and his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun spoke via video conference, the Pentagon said.
PHOTO TINGSHU WANG, REUTERS
Dong Jun
During this exchange, “the two officials discussed the defense relationship between the United States and the People’s Republic of China and regional and global security issues,” Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said in a statement. .
Lloyd Austin “emphasized the importance of continuing to open military lines of communication” between the two powers and “reaffirmed that the United States will continue to fly, sail and operate safely and responsibly wherever international law allows them to do so.”
He then “stressed the importance of respecting freedom of navigation on the high seas guaranteed by international law, particularly in the South China Sea.”
This exchange comes less than a week after an unprecedented summit in Washington between American, Philippine and Japanese leaders, during which they notably condemned the “dangerous and aggressive behavior” of Beijing in this strategic maritime zone.
In a warning clearly aimed at Beijing, US President Joe Biden pledged to defend the Philippines in the event of an “attack”.
Strong tension
The dialogue on military security between the two countries, agreed by Joe Biden and Xi Jinping during a meeting in November in California, recently resumed, with a working meeting in early April between American and Chinese military representatives in Hawaii.
But the Pentagon chief’s last significant exchange with his Chinese counterpart dates back to November 2022, when he met then-Defense Minister Wei Fenghe in Cambodia.
Wei Fenghe was succeeded by Li Shangfu. The latter had exchanged a handshake and a few words with Lloyd Austin during a Defense conference held in June in Singapore. However, the two ministers did not hold a formal meeting. Li Shangfu was later replaced by Dong Jun.
Beijing had decided to break off high-level military discussions with Washington after the visit of Nancy Pelosi, then Democratic leader of the House of Representatives, to Taiwan in 2022.
China and the United States went through a period of very strong tension at the start of 2023, linked to the flight over American territory by a Chinese balloon.
Despite a certain thaw in their relations, tensions still remain very strong, whether it be technological rivalry or Taiwan.
Before the American and Chinese leaders agreed in November to resume military talks, the American Minister of Defense had warned of accidents that could escalate in the absence of communication between the armies of the United States and China.
In December, American Chief of Staff Charles Brown met with his Chinese counterpart Liu Zhenli.
The United States and China “continue to discuss future engagements between our senior military and defense officials,” a senior U.S. official said on condition of anonymity.
“These meetings give us the opportunity to prevent the competition from degenerating into conflict by speaking frankly about our concerns,” he said.
reference: www.lapresse.ca