US-China Defense Policy Coordination Meeting Held...First Talks Since Biden's Inauguration

US Department of Defense: "Frank and In-Depth Dialogue"
Sign of Tension Easing After Meng Wanzhou's Release

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] For the first time since the inauguration of the Joe Biden administration, the United States and China have resumed their defense policy coordination talks. This move is interpreted as an effort to keep communication channels open to prevent localized conflicts and direct confrontations, such as in the South China Sea, amid ongoing disputes between the two countries. There are also assessments that tensions have eased compared to before around the release of Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's Vice Chairwoman.

On the 29th (local time), the U.S. Department of Defense announced in a statement that Michael Chase, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for China, held a video conference defense policy coordination meeting with Huang Xueping, Major General of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PRC), the day before. This is the first defense policy coordination meeting between the U.S. and China since the Biden administration took office. The last such meeting was held on January 14 of last year, but it was not held afterward due to deteriorating relations between the two countries and has now resumed.

The U.S. Department of Defense stated, "In this meeting with the Chinese side, we had a candid, in-depth, and open discussion on issues related to U.S.-China defense relations," and "agreed to keep communication channels open with China going forward." It added, "The United States made clear its commitment to uphold common principles with its allies and partner countries in the Indo-Pacific region."

This meeting was held just two weeks after the U.S., the United Kingdom, and Australia announced the launch of AUKUS, a new security partnership in the Indo-Pacific region. With the establishment of AUKUS, the U.S. and the U.K. announced the transfer of nuclear submarine technology to Australia, which China strongly opposed, claiming it was aimed at targeting itself.

Relations between the two countries worsened further after the launch of AUKUS, but there are evaluations that tensions have eased following the release of Meng Wanzhou on the 24th. Meng was indicted by U.S. prosecutors and had been under house arrest in Canada for two years and nine months before being released. The Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported, "Meng's return removes a major obstacle between the U.S. and China," and "China and the U.S. are expected to respond with more official dialogues and climate-related actions."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.