On January 9, the United States and China concluded a two-day session of military talks in Washington, marking a significant development in the ongoing efforts to restore military-to-military ties between the two nations.
The diplomatic landscape between Washington and Beijing is characterized by contentious issues, ranging from the status of Taiwan to territorial disputes in the South China Sea. This engagement follows a period of strained relations, notably underscored by the downing of an alleged Chinese spy balloon by the U.S. in February.
The decision to resume military dialogue was reached in late 2023 during discussions between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Notably, military ties had been severed by Beijing in response to a visit to Taiwan in August 2022 by then-House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The 17th round of talks involved Michael Chase, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for China, Taiwan, and Mongolia, and Major General Song Yanchao, the Deputy Director of the Central Military Commission Office for International Military Cooperation from China.
Discussions focused on U.S.-PRC defense relations, with emphasis placed on the necessity of maintaining open channels of military communication to prevent inadvertent escalations.
Pentagon officials underscore the significance of robust communication between the two militaries to mitigate the risk of miscalculations leading to conflict.
General Charles Q. Brown, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, engaged in a virtual meeting with his Chinese counterpart, General Liu Zhenli, the previous month as part of these diplomatic efforts.
China, in a statement from its defense ministry, expressed a willingness to cultivate healthy and stable military-to-military relations with the U.S. based on principles of equality and mutual respect.
The statement also urged the U.S. to reduce military deployments and provocative actions in the South China Sea, while calling for a cessation of support for such actions by unspecified “certain countries.”
Additionally, China insisted on adherence to the one-China principle, urging the U.S. to cease arming Taiwan, despite strong objections from the latter.
As Taiwan prepares for presidential and parliamentary polls amid heightened tensions with China, U.S. officials caution that despite the partial restoration of military communications, establishing truly functional dialogue between the two nations may require a considerable amount of time.
It asked the U.S. to abide by the one-China principle and stop arming Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, despite Taiwan’s strong objections, and vowed never to compromise on the issue.
“The United States should fully understand the root causes of the maritime and air security issues, strictly restrain its front-line forces, and stop hyping up (the issues),” it added.
Taiwan is holding presidential and parliamentary polls this weekend amid a ramped-up war of words between Taiwan and China.
U.S. officials have cautioned that even with some restoration of military communications, forging truly functional dialogue between the two sides could take time.
