Beijing’s militarisation of the South China Sea and the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula are just two of the hot topics likely to be on the agenda
US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis is set to begin a three-day visit to China on Tuesday at a time of rising military tensions between the two countries.
Analysts said the visit, which is the first by a US defence secretary since 2014, could help the two sides to find ways to deal with areas of contention.
Ren Guoqiang, Beijing’s defence ministry spokesman, said he hoped that military ties between the US and China could serve as an “important stabilising factor” in the two nations’ broader relations.
Mattis is expected to meet both state and military leaders during his stay. Here are five of the key subjects that may or may not be on the agenda:
South China Sea
The United States is strongly opposed to China’s military build-up in the South China Sea, one of the world’s busiest waterways through which an estimated US$3.4 trillion worth of international shipping trade passes every year.
At the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, a security forum for Asia, earlier this month, Mattis criticised Beijing for its militarisation of the sea. Its deployment of weapons systems were “for the purposes of intimidation and coercion”, he said, adding that the US would “compete vigorously” with China as needed.
US warships and planes have conducted numerous “freedom of navigation” operations close to islands and features claimed by China, much to Beijing’s annoyance, which regards such moves as deliberate provocation.
Washington-Beijing-Taiwan relations
As Beijing has stepped up its military activities in the Taiwan Strait in recent months, including naval and air force encirclement exercises, so the US has indicated its continued commitment to its military ties with Taipei.
