Overview
- Defence Minister Dong Jun is expected to open the three-day Xiangshan Forum with a pitch for closer cooperation in a multipolar order and coded criticism of the United States and its allies.
- Hundreds of military officers, diplomats and scholars from dozens of countries are attending the tightly scripted Beijing event that China positions as a counterpart to Singapore’s Shangri‑La Dialogue.
- The U.S. delegation is scheduled to be led by Pentagon official Cynthia Carras, reflecting Washington’s choice to engage at a senior but not ministerial level.
- The forum offers foreign delegates a rare chance to meet emerging PLA figures as turnover at the Central Military Commission and anti-corruption probes leave China’s military leadership in flux before next year’s Communist Party congress.
- Tensions over Taiwan, disputes in the South China Sea and Sino‑Japanese friction frame the talks and could shape whether China’s message persuades regional states to shift security ties or only tightens existing divisions.