US Pentagon chief speaks with Chinese counterpart for first time since November 2022
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has spoken with China’s national defense minister in the latest in a series of U.S. steps to improve communications with the Chinese military and reduce unsafe and aggressive incidents in the Indo-Pacific
By LOLITA C. BALDOR
Published - Apr 16, 2024, 09:40 AM ET
Last Updated - Apr 16, 2024, 09:40 AM EDT
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with China's national defense minister Tuesday morning, in the latest in a series of U.S. steps to improve communications with the Chinese military and reduce unsafe and aggressive incidents in the Indo-Pacific.
Washington and Beijing have been working to expand communications and ease escalating tensions. Military-to-military contact stalled in August 2022, when Beijing suspended all such communication after then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, which China claims as its own.
