China’s defense minister declined to meet with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during a gathering of defense leaders in Laos, which Austin described as unfortunate. Multilateral meetings in Asia have been used in the past for discussions between U.S. and Chinese defense officials, but China declined a meeting request during the recent Southeast Asian Nations-Plus defense ministers meeting. Austin expressed disappointment, noting the significance of dialogue between the two major regional powers. He does not believe this incident will have long-term implications, but emphasized the importance of communication between the U.S. and China.
Earlier this year, Austin met with China’s defense minister on the sidelines of a conference in Singapore, where they discussed their differences on Taiwan and other issues. Chinese President Xi Jinping recently expressed willingness to work with incoming U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration on various conflicts, including cybercrime, trade, Taiwan, the South China Sea, and Russia. While China’s decision to decline the meeting with Austin is seen as a missed opportunity, it is unclear why they chose not to engage in dialogue at this time. Despite this setback, both sides have acknowledged the need to maintain open military-to-military communications.
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