US, Chinese military officials meet in Fiji in rare engagement

NEW YORK – US and Chinese military officials met at a defence chiefs’ conference in Fiji in August, in a rare direct engagement between the armed forces of the two superpowers. 

Admiral John Aquilino, who leads the US Indo-Pacific Command, held a meeting with a senior Chinese official at the event, which was held from Aug 14 to 16, the Pentagon said. Chinese Defence Ministry spokesman Wu Qian told reporters in Beijing on Thursday that General Xu Qiling, deputy joint chief of staff of the People’s Liberation Army, met US representatives there.

Neither side gave further details on the discussions.

Less than a month before the event, Adm Aquilino, whose command co-hosted the conference, said China had thus far ignored a US invitation to participate. The event ultimately featured delegations from 27 countries, according to the command.

China suspended military ties after then US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022.

Subsequent efforts to resume ties were derailed after the United States identified and later shot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon transiting US territory in February. China declined a US request for a meeting between Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and his counterpart, General Li Shangfu, during the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore in June.

Beijing has demanded the lifting of US sanctions against Gen Li, who was cited in 2018 for overseeing an arms purchase from Russia.

In recent months, the Biden administration has sought to rebuild ties with Beijing, sending a string of civilian Cabinet officials to China for meetings.

Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder, speaking to reporters on Thursday, said he hoped the Aquilino meeting would become part of a regular dialogue with China.

“We are always going to keep the lines of communication open, particularly when you have two large militaries operating in the same area,” he said. BLOOMBERG