US Defense Chief Lloyd Austin Asks to Meet With China’s Still-Unnamed Counterpart

(Bloomberg) — Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin wants to meet his Chinese counterpart this month, a request that comes amid a series of tense encounters between the two militaries in the South China Sea.

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Austin’s office formally requested the sitdown at the upcoming Asean Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus in Jakarta, Indonesia, even though the Chinese position is vacant, a senior US defense official told reporters Monday. The previous minister, Li Shangfu, was ousted last month, and Beijing has yet to announce his replacement.

The move is part of US efforts to reestablish military contacts that were largely severed after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022, prompting the People’s Liberation Army to hold unprecedented exercises around the democracy of some 23 million people. Austin sought a meeting with Li earlier but China refused, saying the US must first lift financial sanctions imposed on him in 2018 over weapons sales to Russia.

The US and China recently accused each other of provocative or unprofessional actions in the South China Sea, the body of water Beijing largely claims as its own. Late last month, the two nations each released video showing tense encounters between naval vessels or warplanes, incidents that raise the risk of an accident spiraling into a bigger conflict.

On Friday in Beijing, the US and China held their first talks on issues dedicated mainly to maritime issues since September 2019, though the topics of the South China Sea and Taiwan come up in other broader meetings.

Chinese officials used those discussions to again complain about “close reconnaissance,” a reference to patrols by the US and its allies in what Washington says is international airspace and waters. The US said it “reiterated the need to resume military-military channels” to avoid possible “miscalculation.”

This week, the US and China are set to hold rare nuclear arms control talks amid growing concern over Beijing’s push to build up its arsenal of atomic weapons.

The purpose of the discussions is to give the Biden administration a better understanding of China’s plans after the Pentagon issued a report saying that the country was manufacturing nuclear weapons faster than expected, according to a Biden administration official.

The talks on maritime and nuclear issues add to some signs the overall relationship between Washington and Beijing is improving, though it remains fragile. The sides have been embroiled in a series of tensions in recent years over trade, restrictions on high-tech shipments to the Asian nation and espionage, most notably allegations Beijing floated a spy balloon over that President Joe Biden ordered shot down.

More: US-China Ties Quietly Mending Even as Global Turmoil Surges

The next chance for the relationship to potentially take the next step forward is likely to come during an expected meeting between Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco.

The White House has said the sitdown will happen at the APEC event, which runs Nov. 11-17, though China has yet to provide confirmation.

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