(ConcernedPatriot.com) – According to the Pentagon, China turned down Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s request on Monday to meet with his Chinese colleague outside the Shangri-La Dialogue security meeting this weekend in Singapore.
According to the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, the U.S. made a “weeks-long effort” to set up a meeting with the Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu at the annual conference. This effort included a letter from Austin to Li.
China has rebuffed a U.S. request for a meeting between their defense chiefs on the sidelines of a security forum in Singapore this weekend, the Pentagon said, showing the limits of a tentative rapprochement between the two rival powers.@nancyayoussefhttps://t.co/HueqVCErNM
— Jonathan Cheng (@JChengWSJ) May 30, 2023
“Overnight, the PRC informed the U.S. that they have declined our early May invitation for Secretary Austin to meet with PRC Minister of National Defense Li Shangfu in Singapore this week,” Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder stated.
“To prevent competitiveness from devolving into confrontation, the Department strongly believes in the importance of maintaining open lines of military-to-military communication between Washington and Beijing,” Ryder added.
Liu Pengyu, the spokeswoman for the Chinese embassy, told the Wall Street Journal that the United States was “continuing to impose sanctions on Chinese officials, institutions, and companies” and was “seeking to suppress China through all available means.”
She asked, “Is there any sincerity in and significance of any communication like this?”
Reporter: Is the State Dept considering lifting sanctions on China's Defense Minister?
Spokesman: No
Reprtr: President Biden said this weekend it's under negotiation, does he have a different view?
Spox: No
Reporter: So are you considering lifting them?
Spox: No@DailyCaller pic.twitter.com/gXACKFr7j7
— Dylan Housman (@Dylan_Housman) May 22, 2023
While Austin was turned down, other politicians recently had a chance to speak with their counterparts.
Gina Raimondo, the Commerce Secretary, met with her counterpart last week.
Glad to welcome Minister Wang Wentao to D.C. Minister Wang and @SecRaimondo exchanged views on trade issues in a candid, professional and constructive manner.
China-US economic and trade ties are mutually beneficial in nature. Such win-win cooperation should continue. pic.twitter.com/KqHWQP40Hg— Xie Feng 谢锋 (@AmbXieFeng) May 26, 2023
In Vienna earlier this month, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met with his counterpart.
U.S. National Security Advisor @JakeSullivan46 met on May 10-11 with Chinese Communist Party Politburo Member and Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission Wang Yi in Vienna.
Read more: https://t.co/nHRUlaltGV pic.twitter.com/G7sJ9svfQN
— U.S. Asia Pacific Media Hub (@eAsiaMediaHub) May 13, 2023
And in early May, Nicholas Burns, the American ambassador to China, had a meeting with Qin Gang.
I met State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang today. We discussed challenges in the U.S.-China relationship and the necessity of stabilizing ties and expanding high-level communication. pic.twitter.com/2AYxkXiVMI
— Ambassador Nicholas Burns (@USAmbChina) May 8, 2023
Other lower-level encounters between American and Chinese officials have taken place.
Austin, however, has been kept at a distance by China, possibly because of the areas of conflict between the American and Chinese armies, such as Taiwan and China’s spy balloon program.
Best way to protect Taiwan and world order is for Putin to lose, says US lawmaker
During a visit to Kyiv on May 26, a senior Senator stated that if the U.S. failed to support Ukraine sufficiently in the conflict with China, it would signal to Beijing that it may seize Taiwan. pic.twitter.com/b74UkaV2Ga
— Spotlight on China (@spotlightoncn) May 28, 2023
Earlier this year, the Biden administration suffered a high-profile setback when a Chinese spy balloon soared above important military facilities on American soil before being shot down by American forces over the Atlantic Ocean.
https://twitter.com/shiziwang0406/status/1663469552875995136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1663469552875995136%7Ctwgr%5E447f676dc45b926e2fa3f47c8946caf2f22c48b1%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Fquery%3Dhttps3A2F2Ftwitter.com2Fshiziwang04062Fstatus2F1663469552875995136widget%3DTweet
As long as Austin is subject to American sanctions, which were put in place by the Trump administration in 2018 due to Chinese purchases of Russian fighter jets and missiles, China has also stated that there is minimal likelihood of them ever meeting, the Financial Times reports.
However, a meeting between Austin and Li is not forbidden under the penalty.
“This is far from the first time that the [People’s Republic of China] has rejected invitations to communicate from the secretary, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, or other [Department of Defense] officials,” a senior U.S. defense official told reporters.
The official added, “Frankly, it’s just the latest in a litany of excuses,” noting that China had refused or ignored numerous standing dialogue requests, about ten requests for working-level discussions, and more than a dozen requests for senior-level meetings since 2021.
China won't meet with our Secretary of Defense, but will meet with Elon Musk.
Take the hint, guys. https://t.co/MkuMU6lXxa
— Eric Garland (@ericgarland) May 30, 2023
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