Austin seeks reopening of U.S.-China defense contact

Beijing and Washington try to manage competition responsibly

SIEM REAP, Cambodia (AFP) — United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin sought the reopening of communication lines between the US and China during talks with his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe in Cambodia on Tuesday.

The dialogues and mechanisms to help manage the two superpowers’ competition responsibly were part of procedures and exchanges that were scrapped by Beijing after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August despite furious warnings and threats from Chinese officials, according to a senior US defense official privy to the talks on the sidelines of a conference of defense ministers in Siem Reap.

“Both sides acknowledged that both militaries should earnestly implement the important consensus reached by both heads of state, maintain communication and contact, strengthen crisis management, and work hard to uphold regional peace and stability,” a Chinese defense ministry spokesperson said.

“Both sides agreed that it’s important that our countries work together to ensure that competition does not veer into conflict,” but “competition remains the defining feature of the relationship,” the US defense official told journalists.

The rival powers have clashed over a host of issues including Taiwan, security and human rights, but there have been attempts to lower the temperature since a rare summit between the leaders of both countries last week.

US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping tried to cool the rhetoric but the differences were clear — and the exchange between their defense chiefs was similar.