Singapore: The defense chiefs of the United States and China are in Singapore on Friday for a key security forum where they will hold rare face-to-face talks, with Taiwan and other issues likely to dominate the three-day event.
The meeting between US Lloyd Austin and China’s Dong Jun as part of the Shangri-La talks will be the first face-to-face talks between the defense chiefs of the two countries in 18 months.
Defense chiefs and officials attend the annual forum, which has become a barometer of US-China relations in recent years.
This year’s edition comes a week after China conducted military exercises around Taiwan and warned of a war on the US-backed island following the inauguration of President Lai Ching, who has described Beijing as a “dangerous separatist”.
The dispute over democratic Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its territory, centers on a dispute between the rivals.
Beijing has also criticized Washington for strengthening defense ties in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly with the Philippines, and for continuing to deploy warships and warships in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.
China sees it as part of a decade-long effort by the United States.
President Joe Biden’s administration and China have stepped up ties to ease tensions between their nuclear-armed rivals, with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visiting Beijing and Shanghai last month.
The main focus is the resumption of military-to-military talks.
China severed military ties with the US in 2022 in response to US Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan.
Tensions between Washington and Beijing have increased over issues such as the 2023 launch of Chinese-made balloons into US airspace, Taiwan President Tai Ing-wen and Pelosi’s successor, Kevin McCarthy, and American military aid to Taipei.
After the summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Biden last November, the two sides agreed to resume high-level military talks.
