A key Biden administration goal for averting a future war with China through greater military-to-military exchanges went unmet as Chinese officials refused to reopen the communications channel during recent top-level talks in Beijing.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken defended the fruits of his two-day mission to China on Sunday and Monday and the lack of Chinese response to resuming military communications, telling CBS News while in Beijing, “It’s a work in progress.”
China cut off all military dialogue and exchanges with the U.S. military in August 2021 to express anger at the visit to Taiwan by then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, which Beijing claimed violated previous diplomatic understandings on the issue. Since then, China has stepped up military activities around Taiwan with large-scale warplane flights and naval activities that U.S. officials say have upset the fragile status quo across the 100-mile-wide Taiwan Strait.
China turned down a meeting between Mr. Austin and Gen. Li during a recent defense conference in Singapore, citing in part the Trump administration’s decision to sanctions the Chinese general for his suspected role in China’s purchase of 10 Russian SU-35 jets in 2017, and S-400 surface-to-air missile system-related gear in 2018.
One concession the administration already made was giving in to a Chinese government demand not to release details obtained by the FBI on the equipment contained in a suspected surveillance balloon that traversed the United States in February before being shot down over the Atlantic by an F-22. The electronic gear was recovered from the balloon that the Pentagon has said was engaged in surveillance of sensitive U.S. military sites.
“Secretary Blinken admitted the Chinese Communist Party would not agree to the U.S. request to resume mil-to-mil dialogue, but asserted progress was made from this visit and that future visits would ensure a resumption of mil-to-mil dialogue,” Capt. Fanell said.
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