A senior Chinese military officer held a video conference with a US counterpart on Thursday night (21) to discuss issues such as Taiwan and the South China Sea, marking the resumption of a high-level military dialogue between the two powers after more than a year.
Liu Zhenli, a member of China's Central Military Commission and head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Department, told US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Charles Brown that the two militaries should “conduct communication and cooperation on the basis of equality and respect” to “jointly promote the stabilization and improvement of bilateral relations”.
The Chinese representative emphasized that the Taiwan issue is China's internal matter that “does not admit any external interference” and that the Chinese military will “resolutely defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” according to a statement issued last night by the Chinese Ministry of Defense.
Liu also called on the US to respect China's territorial sovereignty and maritime rights in the South China Sea, waters over which Beijing claims almost all of its sovereignty and in which there have been incidents involving Philippine vessels in recent weeks, condemned by Washington. .
According to the Chinese representative, the key to developing “healthy, stable and sustainable” military relations is for the US to “have a correct perception of China”, with the premise that Americans “genuinely respect the fundamental interests and main concerns” of the Asian country.
The Chinese Defense Ministry did not elaborate on what Brown said during the meeting, but according to a statement released by the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, he discussed “the importance of working together to manage competition responsibly, avoid miscalculations and maintain open and direct lines of communication.”
“It is important for the Chinese military to engage in substantive dialogue to reduce the likelihood of misunderstandings,” Brown said.
High-level military dialogue between both countries was suspended by Beijing after then-US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022, a trip that infuriated Chinese officials.
Chinese and US presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden, respectively, agreed to resume these talks during their meeting in November on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco.
Relations between China and the United States are facing a period of thawing after months of hostilities over Taiwan, the trade war, technological competition and new episodes of mutual sanctions, among other issues.
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