In a notable turn of events‚ Lloyd Austin faced an unexpected set-back when Dong Jun‚ Chinas defense minister‚ turned down a meet-up during the ASEAN-Plus defense gathering in Laos (which highlights the complex nature of US-China military relations)
“Its unfortunate and affects the region because everyone wants to see two significant powers talk to each other“ Austin stated to reporters; he added that only Beijing could explain their decision not to use this chance for dialog
The no-show comes after their last face-to-face chat in Singapore earlier this year‚ where both sides discussed Taiwan and other hot-button issues — though they agreed on keeping military communication lines open
Just days ago Xi Jinping and Joe Biden had wide-ranging discussions covering several key topics:
- cyber-security matters
- trade relationships
- Taiwan situation
- South China Sea disputes
- Russia-related concerns
The defense chiefs previous interactions showed some promise for military-to-military talks: however this recent development might affect regional stability — even though Austin believes it wont impact future diplomatic chances