U.S., China defence ministers meet for second time this year

Reuters:

PHNOM PENH, Nov 22 – The Chinese and U.S. defence ministers met for their second face-to-face talks this year on Tuesday, a U.S. official said, in a meeting that was not expected to lead to major breakthroughs but could touch on the importance of crisis communication and their opposing views on Taiwan.

While U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met Chinese Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe in Singapore in June, this is their first meeting since a visit to Taiwan by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in August enraged China, which regards the island as its territory. The meeting is taking place on the sidelines of an ASEAN defence ministers’ gathering in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the meeting between the two started at 10am local time (0300 GMT).

Tuesday’s meeting follows a three-hour meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping last week on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia, aimed at preventing strained ties from spilling into a new Cold War.