The Defense Minister of China spoke out against the “Conflict is Not Imminent nor Infinite” and the “Past of the Taiwan Strait”

The senior member of the delegation that accompanied the Defense Minister accused Austin of making false accusations against China.

Washington has been holding on to alliances that are “remnants of the Cold War” and establishing new pacts, such as the A UKUS agreement with Britain and Australia and the “Quad” grouping with Australia, India and Japan.

Austin made sure to assure China that the U.S. still firmly objects to any changes to the one-China policy, which sees Beijing as the government of China but allows informal relations with Taiwan.

The invasion ofUkraine by Russia made it clear how dangerous the world would become if big countries were able to invade their peaceful neighbors with no fear.

“Conflict is neither imminent nor inevitable,” Austin said. It is our job to keepeterrence strong. The whole world has a stake in maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

Austin was in the room but it wasn’t clear if Li was in the room. He did join the American defense secretary and others later for a ministerial roundtable.

The U.S. and China’s defense chief: How to prevent a war in the South-Pacific region from failing relations with the United States

Congressional visits and weapons sales to Taiwan has increased in recent years as the U.S. tries to improve relations with China. Meanwhile, China wants the U.S. to first drop its sanctions on Li, which the U.S. imposed in 2018 when Li, as then-head of the military’s equipment division, purchased Russian weapons.

The sanctions, which broadly prevent Li from doing business in the United States, do not prevent him from holding official talks, American defense officials have said.

Austin repeated the calls made by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during his address at the forum to engage in regular, direct communications with China to help prevent a conflict.

“When the right time to talk is, that’s when the defense leaders are responsible,” Austin said. “The right time to talk is every time. It’s the right time to talk.

China’s defense chief Li said China wanted cooperation with the U.S., but delegations from each side presented drastically different interpretations of how to mend bilateral relations.

He said that the US is committed to deterring North Korea’s missile threat as well as China’s claims on Taiwan, a self-governing island democracy that Beijing says is its territory.

During the height of the Pandemic, the U.S. provided millions of vaccine doses and is still involved in disaster relief and humanitarian assistance in the region. climate change, illegal fishing and ensure supply chains don’t suffer disruptions are some of the issues of importance to Asian-Pacific nations.

The U.S. Navy’s Role in the War on Crime and Security in the Indo-Pacific, and a Resolution to Cambodia’s Proposed Security Constraints

“We are committed to ensuring that every country can fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows,” he said at the forum hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank. Every country must remain free to conduct lawful maritime activities.

The U.S. has been expanding its own activities around the Indo-Pacific to counter sweeping territorial claims from China, including regularly sailing through and flying over the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea.

Austin spoke about the need for support for Washington’s vision of “a free, open, and secure Indo- Pacific within a world of rules and rights” at an annual forum bringing together top defense officials, diplomats and leaders.

The proposal was treated with cautious curiosity from Southeast Asian delegates, however. Cambodia’s defense minister later wanted a negotiated end to the war.

“As soon as you say you want to negotiate for peace in Ukraine, you are cast aside as ‘pro-Russia.’ It really constrains our options,” said a senior Indonesian diplomat. He declined to be named as he was not authorized to take media interviews.

Olekseii Reznikov was the defense minister of Ukraine and immediately responded to the proposal from Prabowo Subianto, who proposed a demilitarized zone between Ukrainian territory and the rest of the country.

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Southeast Asian nations are not entirely swayed by the arguments for Ukraine however. Countries like Thailand and Malaysia have either withheld condemnation of Russia’s invasion or, like Indonesia, have continued to openly court Russia.

Many countries are making a significant contribution to Ukraine. But I think we also, at the same time, should be humble about the need also to have a strategic dialogue with the Global South,” Pål Jonson, Sweden’s defense minister, said in an interview with NPR.” Sweden is going to increase its defense budget this year, and applied to join NATO, breaking away from its position of neutrality.

Political heavy-hitters from the European Union and Ukraine also traveled to Singapore to rally support for Ukraine in its fight to expel Russian troops from its territory.

Canada’s navy said a Chinese navy warship aggressively cut in front of the convoy and came within 150 meters of crashing into the American ship the USS Chung-Hoon. The Pentagon said earlier this month that a Chinese fighter jet cut in front of a US airplane over the South China Sea.

He stated that the fact that the boats hadn’t collided showed how good the navy is. “The close distance between the two ships shows the utmost professionalism! He said that not colliding shows their professional ability.

Source: https://www.npr.org/2023/06/04/1180023276/four-takeaways-as-chinas-defense-chief-made-a-barbed-speech-at-a-singapore-summi

Shangri-La Dialogue: Why does it happen near China’s sovereign waters and airspace? “There won’t be any problems for the world,” he told NPR

“If a collision were to happen in the future, responsibility would entire lie with the U.S.,” He Lei, deputy director of the People Liberation Army’s Academy of Military Sciences in Beijing, told NPR. There would not be any more incidents if the US stopped such transits forever.

The two countries should try to find common ground, argued Li. A confrontation between China and the U.S. will cause a disaster for the world, he said.

“When president Marcos and president Xi met in Beijing, they agreed to manage differences through peaceful means and to promote freedom of navigation… Jay Tarriela, the Philippines deputy chief of coast guard staff said that China’s actions are showing a confrontation while they talk about dialogue. Earlier this year, the Philippines accused a Chinese coast guard vessel of blinding the crew of a fishing vessel with a military grade laser.

However, the response to Li’s remarks from various Southeast Asian delegations gave the impression that this “family” is very much divided. Some said that while China talks about co-operation, its actions have a different message.

Austin touted expanded military exercises with allies and partners, including Japan, Australia, the Philippines and Indonesia. The U.S. is increasing its military sharing with India, as well as building a new submarine fleet with Australia, and creating interoperability between its military systems with Japan.

“Why does this all happen near China’s sovereign waters and airspace? China’s defense chief said that Chinese ships and aircraft never go near other countries’ airspace or waters.

On the same day that two warships from the U.S. and Canada sailed through the Taiwan Strait, Lloyd Austin rebuked China for being unwilling to sit down for talks.

His remarks highlight how mounting U.S.-China military tensions have dominated the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, spilling out into the open with dueling speeches delivered by their respective defense chiefs over the weekend.

Military vessels and aircraft should not be in our airspace or in our waters. “Don’t worry about your airspace or territorial waters – there won’t be any problems.”

SINGAPORE – China’s new defense minister made his first international appearance on Sunday at an annual defense summit, where he delivered a speech full of thinly-veiled barbs at the U.S., calling on it to “mind your own business” after two close encounters between the country’s militaries.