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China snubs US defense secretary at Singapore Summit

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Israel Ojoko
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U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu were unable to meet at the security summit in Singapore.<br>Image Credit: Reuters

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was unable to meet with his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu at a security summit in Singapore, despite extending an invitation for a face-to-face talk.

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The Pentagon said on Friday that China had declined the offer, citing U.S. sanctions on Li as a reason.

Tensions over military actions and sanctions

Austin had hoped to engage with Li on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual forum for defense ministers and experts from Asia-Pacific countries. He expressed concern over China's increasingly assertive military actions in the region, such as flying fighter jets close to U.S. reconnaissance aircraft over the South China Sea. He also said he wanted to avoid any incident that could spiral out of control.

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"I would welcome any opportunity to engage with leadership. I think defense departments should be talking to each other on a routine basis or should have open channels for communication," Austin said at a joint press conference with his Japanese counterpart Yasukazu Hamada in Tokyo on Thursday, before heading to Singapore.

However, China blamed the U.S. for imposing sanctions on Li, who is also a general in the People's Liberation Army and an aerospace engineer. Li was sanctioned by the Trump administration in 2018 for his role in acquiring weapons from Russia as part of China's military modernization drive.

"If the United States says it wants to communicate while suppressing and containing China by any means and imposing sanctions on Chinese officials, institutions and enterprises, what is the sincerity and meaning of such communication?" Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Tuesday.

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Japan and South Korea seek dialogue with China

While Austin was unable to meet with Li, Hamada did have a bilateral meeting with him at the summit. Japan and China have recently established a defense hotline to improve communication and avoid accidental encounters in the tense region. Hamada and Li also held their first phone call on the hotline last month.

Hamada said he urged Li to refrain from unilateral actions that could escalate tensions, such as flying military aircraft near Japanese airspace or sending coast guard ships near disputed islands in the East China Sea. He also said he asked Li to cooperate on issues such as North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, climate change and pandemic response.

South Korea's Defense Minister Suh Wook also met with Li at the summit and discussed ways to enhance mutual trust and cooperation. Suh said he proposed resuming defense exchanges and dialogues that were suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. He also said he expressed hope for China's constructive role in achieving peace and denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.

The Shangri-La Dialogue was attended by defense ministers and officials from 28 countries, including Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. It was the first major in-person security gathering since the pandemic began.

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