U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (L) leaves a meeting at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore as part of his attendance at the 21st Shangri-La Dialogue Summit on May 31, 2024. The U.S. and Chinese defense ministers will hold rare direct talks in Singapore on May 31, raising hopes of increased military dialogue that could help prevent the Taiwan dispute and other hot-button issues from spiraling out of control.
Nguyen Nhac AFP | Getty Images
SINGAPORE – US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Friday expressed concerns to his Chinese counterpart, Adm. Dong Jun, about China’s naval activities in the Taiwan Strait and reiterated that China “should not take advantage of Taiwan’s political transition… .as an excuse to take coercive measures”.
The meeting between the two on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Summit in Singapore was the first face-to-face meeting between the two countries. Defense Ministers of China and the United States From November 2022.
CNBC witnessed the two delegations walking out of the venue, but neither Dong nor Austin responded to reporters’ questions.
According to Pentagon sources, Austin said that the United States remains committed to the “one China” policy. He also told Dong that the United States will continue to “fly, sail and operate safely and responsibly wherever international law allows.”
Austin also reiterated the November announcement by U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping that they would resume phone conversations between theater commanders in the coming months and welcomed plans to convene a crisis communications working group by the end of 2019. plan.
Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian told reporters at a press conference that the meeting gave both sides a better understanding of the Taiwan issue, adding that it had “positive effects.”
Wu Bangguo also emphasized that “one meeting cannot solve all the problems in the relations between the two militaries, but a meeting is better than no meeting.” He also added that more communication is necessary and will help stabilize relations between the two militaries.
He said the two defense ministers also discussed Russia’s war in Ukraine and the conflict in Gaza. The Pentagon press release noted that Austin and Dong discussed North Korea’s provocations, such as its contribution to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Friday’s meeting follows a video conference call between Austin and Dong in April. The Pentagon said U.S. defense officials “will continue to actively discuss future multi-level engagement between defense and military officials with their Chinese counterparts.”
—CNBC’s Lin Lin contributed to this report.
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