The Americans have already imposed sanctions on the head of the military department of the Middle Kingdom.
China has refused the United States a meeting of defense ministers, the Pentagon has called this refusal “regrettable”. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was hoping to meet with his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference.
The Asian Security Summit Shangri-La Dialogue is an annual intergovernmental security forum organized by the independent think tank International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). It is traditionally attended by defense ministers, permanent heads of ministries and other military heads of states in the Asia-Pacific region.
Since 2002, the summit has been held in Singapore to discuss important political, defense and security issues in the region. This year, the event will take place from June 2 to 4.
Singapore. Photo by Zhu Hongzhi on Unsplash Last year, after a two-year hiatus due to the coronavirus pandemic, the summit brought together representatives from 42 countries, including 37 ministerial-level delegates and more than 30 senior defense officials . By the way, it was not without Zelenskyy asking for money and weapons – he made a virtual appeal to the participants of the summit.
The head of the US Department of Defense really wants to meet his Chinese counterpart, but the ministers cannot agree on a meeting. The Wall Street Journal wrote about China’s refusal to accept a meeting on the sidelines of the summit. The publication clarified that in the US minister’s office, the refusal was described as a “disturbing reluctance” to participate in military contacts.
Earlier, the Financial Times wrote about the refusal. The publication reported that the meeting of Chinese and American ministers is restricted “due to the dispute over sanctions – the latest obstacle to high-level dialogue between the two powers”.
Photo: pixabay.com Indeed, the Americans themselves imposed sanctions on Li Shangfu. This happened at a time when he headed the Training and Supply Department of the Central Military Council of the People’s Republic of China, and his department purchased Su-35 aircraft and equipment for anti-missile missile systems. -aircraft S-400 to Russia.
The US Secretary of Defense issued a new statement regarding the denial of the meeting while in Tokyo. Lloyd Austin called Li Shangfu’s refusal “deplorable”.
“I would welcome any opportunity to talk to Lee. I think the defense departments should talk to each other regularly or should have open channels of communication,” Austin said.
Photo: Social Media Meanwhile, he added that the United States will continue to work in the Indo-Pacific region with countries of the “number of like-minded people” with whom Washington has “common values ​​and tasks Commons, to “ensure freedom and openness”.
The US Minister also noted that he was deeply concerned about China’s attempts to “undermine the rules-based order” (we are talking about the concept of world order promoted by the West: as soon as someone acts against the will of the West, he instantly declares groundless “violation of the rules” and, failing to present the facts, declares his “right to punish the offender”).
In China, they are convinced that the United States is entirely responsible for the current communication difficulties. China’s Defense Ministry noted that it is states that “artificially create obstacles, seriously undermining mutual trust.”
Photo: pixabay.com Earlier, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said the United States should take concrete steps to create conditions for dialogue between the Chinese and American military. According to Beijing, China-US relations should be built on the basis of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation.
So far, the United States has failed to do so. Experts polled by Reuters believe that tensions between the United States and China will continue. Moreover, relations between the countries are militarily strained – two days ago there was a dangerous rapprochement between American and Chinese fighters. The American RC-135 was flying over the South China Sea, and the Chinese J-16 rose to escort it. The Celestial Empire considers part of the South China Sea to be its territory, but not everyone agrees with this position.
Earlier, Notepad said the United States was asking to recognize China as a rogue state and punish “inhuman behavior.”
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