China 'open' to potential military talks with US in Cambodia

There could be an opportunity for China and the United States to conduct high-level military talks during the upcoming ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus, with China signaling an open and positive attitude toward the subject, experts said.

Despite this, expectations remain muted given current China-US relations, they said. Meanwhile, China would seize the opportunity of the meeting to promote military cooperation between China and member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

In response to a question as to whether Chinese and US defense ministers would hold talks on the sidelines of the defense conference in Cambodia, a spokesman for China's Ministry of National Defense said on Sunday that both sides are "communicating and coordinating "on bilateral exchanges on the sidelines of the ADMM-Plus.

"The Chinese side holds a positive and open attitude toward exchanges with the US side," said Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, spokesman for the ministry.

Liu Lin, a researcher at the People's Liberation Army Academy of Military Science, said China's "positive wording" is sending a positive signal that it is willing to talk with the US.

"The words 'communicating and coordinating' that the spokesman used mean that work teams on both sides are engaging in private and working on a possible meeting of defense ministers," she said.

The ADMM-Plus would be a good opportunity for both China and the US to enhance bilateral communication, since the summit between the two presidents in Indonesia already reached a consensus that both sides should manage differences and avoid miscalculation, Liu said.

Yuan Zheng, deputy director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Institute of American Studies, said there is now a window for China and the US to stabilize bilateral relations after the meeting in Indonesia. "If the two defense ministers hold talks, it would be beneficial in preventing misunderstanding.

"However, don't have overly high expectations for the current low in China-US ties," he said. "It's difficult for the US to make substantive changes to its China policy. What the two sides can do now is to seek to avoid further escalation."

Earlier on Saturday, the Defense Ministry announced that Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe will attend the 9th ADMM-Plus and visit Cambodia from Sunday to Thursday.

Wei will deliver a speech and hold meetings with the heads of delegations of some participating countries on the sidelines, exchanging views on international and regional situations and defense security cooperation, the ministry said, adding that he would also meet and hold talks with Cambodian state and military leaders during his visit to the country.

Ahead of Wei's trip, the defense minister met on Friday with counterparts from two ASEAN countries — Indonesia and Singapore — in Xi'an, according to the Defense Ministry.

According to Liu, that is a reflection of the attention China pays to its ties with ASEAN and that there is a good basis for cooperation between China and the regional bloc.

"Over the past several years, China has placed great importance on deepening defense ties with ASEAN, which is indicated by the assorted multilateral communication channels, including ADMM-Plus and the China-ASEAN Defense Ministers' Informal Meeting," she said.

"From a bilateral perspective, China has engaged in plentiful military cooperation with ASEAN countries through the form of joint exercises, exchanges of personnel and technology," Liu said, pointing to joint drills by Chinese and Indonesian special forces and by the Chinese and Singaporean navies.

"So we should seize this opportunity to further advance defense diplomacy with ASEAN," she said, noting that such a move would enhance mutual trust and benefit regional peace and stability.