US and China Resume High-Level Military to Military Communications in Effort to Reduce Tensions

The United States and China have resumed high-level military to military communications for the first time in over a year. On Thursday morning, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown held a video call with his Chinese counterpart Gen. Liu Zhenli.

The call was the result of a commitment made by President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit last month. The two leaders agreed to restart military to military communications in order to prevent competition from spiraling into conflict.

The readout of the call from the joint staff did not provide any further details on the conversation. However, senior U.S. officials who previewed the call for reporters said that the call is a step in the right direction.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has not yet spoken to his Chinese counterpart, but the officials said they are working with Chinese counterparts to set up different calls at various levels.

The call between Gen. Brown and Gen. Liu marks the first high-level conversation between the two militaries in more than a year. It is hoped that the call will help to reduce tensions and prevent any potential conflict between the two countries.