The U.S. and Chinese militaries this week resumed an annual military meeting that has not been held since 2021, when China suspended the talks following then–House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in August 2022.
The Pentagon issued a readout of the meeting, stating that Michael Chase, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia, met with Maj. Gen. Song Yanchao, China’s Deputy Director of the Central Military Commission Office for International Military Cooperation, at the Pentagon for the 17th U.S.-PRC Defense Policy Coordination Talks from Monday to Tuesday. The two parties last met in 2021 via a virtual conference due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Discussions included U.S.-PRC defense relations, with Chase highlighting the importance of maintaining open lines of military-to-military communication to prevent competition from veering into conflict, according to the readout. Chase also discussed operational safety across the Indo-Pacific and reaffirmed that the United States will continue to fly, sail, and operate safely and responsibly wherever international law allows. He also underscored the U.S. commitment to its allies in the Indo-Pacific and globally remains ironclad.
The parties also discussed regional and global security issues, with the U.S. emphasizing respect for high seas freedom of navigation guaranteed under international law in light of repeated Chinese harassment of lawfully operating Philippine vessels in the South China Sea. Also discussed was Russia’s war against Ukraine and concerns about recent provocations from North Korea, according to the readout.
Chase also reiterated that the United States remains committed to its longstanding One China policy, which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the Three U.S.-China Joint Communiques and the Six Assurances, and reaffirmed the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. “The Department will continue to engage in active discussions with PRC counterparts about future engagements between defense and military officials at multiple levels,” concluded the readout.
The resumption of military communications followed President Biden’s Nov. 15 summit with China President Xi Jinping, at which the two leaders agreed to resume talks. Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff, Air Force Gen. Charles Quinten Brown Jr., hosted a video teleconference call with his People’s Liberation Army (PLA) counterpart, PLA Chief of the Joint Staff Department Gen. Liu Zhenli, on Dec. 21 last year.
The talks in Washington are expected to pave the way for a meeting between Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defense Minister Adm. Dong Jun, who was appointed to the post on Dec. 29 last year. China previously had refused any talks between Austin and then-Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu until the U.S. removed the sanctions it imposed on Li in 2018. Li, who disappeared from public sight in August, was formally dismissed on Oct. 24, with some outlets reporting that he had been arrested for corruption. Dong, previously the commander of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), has not been placed under any U.S sanctions in the past.
Barring a direct visit, Austin and Dong are likely to hold a meeting on the sidelines of the International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) Shangri-La Dialogue 2024, an annual gathering of global defense chiefs and top military leaders held in Singapore, this year from May 31 to June 2. Last year, the U.S. called for a meeting between Austin and Li during the Shangri-La Dialogue but were rebuffed by China.
China’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) also issued a release on the talks, stating the China expressed it is willing to develop a sound and stable military-to-military relationship with the U.S. on the basis of equality and respect following the consensus reached by the two heads of state during their meeting in San Francisco. MND also called for the U.S to take China’s concerns seriously and to contribute more to the growth of the military-to military-relationship.
The release also stated that China will not make any concession or compromise on the Taiwan issue and demanded the U.S. abide by the One-China principle, honor relevant commitments, stop arming Taiwan, and not support Taiwan independence. The release also urged the U.S. to reduce its military presence and provocation in the South China Sea and to “stop supporting provocative actions by a certain country.” This is a reference to the U.S. Navy’s continuous presence around the South China Sea and joint naval activities there with the Philippines, and the Philippines’s regular resupply missions to its Second Thomas Shoal outpost in the Spratly Islands, consisting of the grounded LST BRP Sierra Madre (LS-57). China, which also claims Second Thomas Shoal, has the outpost under an unofficial blockade. China Coast Guard ships routinely harass and block resupply missions by the Philippines.
China also called for the U.S. to “fully recognize the root cause of maritime and air security issues, strictly discipline its troops on the ground, and stop manipulating and hyping-up relevant issues,” said the release, likely referring to the various claims of Chinese aerial harassment of U.S. military aircraft. In October, the MND claimed destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) harassed a PLAN task group in the South China Sea on Aug.19, and released a video showing the event. “The Chinese side also elaborated China’s stern positions and concerns on issues concerning China’s core interests and international hot-spot issues,” concluded the release.
