WASHINGTON – Top military officials from the US and China held a long-awaited call Thursday, ending a 16-month standoff in which Beijing severed all military ties with Washington.
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown and his counterpart, Gen. Liu Zhenli of China’s Joint Staff, spoke via video conference to discuss “several global and regional security issues,” according to the Pentagon.
“General Brown discussed the importance of working together to manage competition responsibly, avoid miscalculations and maintain open and direct lines of communication,” Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesman Navy Capt. Jereal Dorsey said in a statement.
“Gen. Brown reiterated the importance of the People’s Liberation Army engaging in substantive dialogue to reduce the possibility of misunderstandings,” he added.
It was the first time any Pentagon official spoke with a Chinese military leader since August 2022, when then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi made a controversial visit to Taiwan.
The move angered China – which says its No. 1 is to absorb the island – and Beijing decides to dialogue with the US.
Air Force Chief of Staff General CQ Brown (pictured) and his counterpart, General Liu Zhenli of China’s Joint Staff, spoke via video conference, ending a 16-month standoff. AP
The call came about a month after President Biden met with Chinese President Xi Jinping when both were in San Francisco for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
Resuming military-to-military communications was one of the key agreements that came out of the hours-long meeting.
Critical call
During China’s silent treatment, defense officials repeatedly bemoaned the lack of communication between the two adversaries, describing it as dangerous to close lines of communication in case of close calls, disruptive interactions, or other misunderstandings.
“General Brown discussed the importance of working together to manage competition responsibly, avoid miscalculations, and maintain open and direct lines of communication,” Navy Capt. Jereal Dorsey said in a statement. AP
“Beijing has consistently denied or ignored US requests for defense involvement at various levels,” the Defense Department said. “Those concerns have been reinforced as US officials observe increasingly provocative and risky behavior on the part of the Chinese military.”
That was made clear earlier this year when the US military detected a Chinese spy balloon entering US airspace.
Beijing ignored the Pentagon’s calls for an explanation, choosing to publicly deny sending the balloon into US airspace and claiming it was a civilian aircraft that had gone awry.
The balloon eventually crossed US airspace from Alaska to North Carolina, where the Air Force eventually shot down the surveillance ship after a week-long trip over the country, angering Beijing.
Although Thursday’s call brought optimism, Pentagon spokesman Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder declined to say whether Liu had agreed to continue regular communications or reactivate the military-to-military emergency line.
“I won’t speak for China, but obviously … we will continue to do everything we can to keep the lines of communication open,” he said.
Still, Dorsey said Brown supported during the call for regular conversations about “defense policy coordination” and open communication between the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command and China’s eastern and southern theater commands.
Avoiding unintended conflicts
Brown also called for resuming the country’s commitment to the Military Maritime Consultative Agreement, which was signed in 1998 and established a routine of regular talks between the two countries on maritime security until US-China relations worsen in 2020.
The maritime talks are crucial to maintaining peace in the western Pacific, where the US Navy regularly patrols and challenges Beijing’s illegal claims to islands and reefs in the South China Sea.
It is the first time a Pentagon official has spoken to a Chinese military leader since Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022. AFP via Getty Images
There have been several close calls and dangerous encounters between the navies of the two countries over the past year as Chinese forces tried to drive away US ships in international waters.
“China respects the navigation and overflight rights that all countries in the South China Sea are entitled to in accordance with international law,” Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang said. “However, we firmly oppose any action that undermines China’s sovereignty and security in the name of freedom of navigation and flight.”
Such risks also extend to the air. Between 2021 and 2023, the US saw China conduct more than 180 “forced and risky air intercepts” with American military aircraft in the region, according to the Pentagon’s latest China Military Power report.
“Defense officials have noted a sharp increase in risky and aggressive Chinese intercepts of US aircraft operating in international airspace in accordance with international law,” according to the DoD.
Between 2021 and 2023, the US saw China conduct more than 180 “forced and risky air intercepts” with American military aircraft in the region, according to a Pentagon report. REUTERS Pentagon spokesman Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder declined to say whether Liu had agreed to reactivate the military-to-military hotline. Getty Images
If lines of communication remain open, the Pentagon hopes to avoid miscalculations after such encounters that could otherwise inadvertently spark conflict — or even war.
While Brown “always communicates with defense chiefs around the world,” Dorsey said, it was the first time he had such a high-profile call since taking over from Army Gen. Mark Milley in September.
“[He] remain open to constructive dialogue with the PRC,” Dorsey said, using the official acronym for China.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
