US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan has met with a key Chinese defense official to foster communication and prevent disagreements over Taiwan and the South China Sea from escalating into violence.
The meeting on Thursday occurred one day after the White House announced plans for a phone chat between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden in the coming weeks.
“Your request to meet with me demonstrates the value you place on military security and the relationship between our militaries,” Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, said Sullivan in his opening remarks.
Sullivan stated that “it is rare that we have the opportunity to have this kind of exchange” and emphasized, “the need for us to responsibly manage the US-China relationship.”
Sullivan is on the third day of a three-day trip to China, his first as a national security advisor, to maintain high-level conversations and stabilize bilateral relations to avoid war.
His key meetings have taken place over the last one and a half days with Wang Yi, the foreign minister and the ruling Communist Party’s senior foreign policy official.
The White House stated that all sides will maintain open channels of communication, including plans for a “leader-level call” in the coming weeks.
There was no indication that the two leaders would meet in person before Biden leaves the Oval Office.
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