US and China Convene "Candid" Maritime Talks; US Voices Concern Over China's "Dangerous and Unlawful" Actions in South China Sea

Talks ahead of expected Biden-Xi meeting highlight U.S. concerns over China's interference with Philippine resupply mission and unsafe intercept of a U.S. aircraft; spotlight on resumption of military-military channels to avoid potential conflict.

• The United States and China conducted "candid" dialogues on maritime issues, which included topics on the disputed South China Sea. Concerns were raised by the U.S. about China's perceived "dangerous and unlawful" operations in the area.
• The dialogue took place in Beijing between the department's China Coordinator Mark Lambert and China's Director-General for Boundary and Ocean Affairs Hong Liang. This is part of a recent inflow of high-level diplomacy, including a likely meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping at the mid-November APEC summit in San Francisco.
• The U.S. State Department highlighted the need to recommence military-military channels as part of the efforts to manage the U.S.-China relationship responsibly and avoid miscommunication and miscalculation.
• The U.S. raised concerns over China's interference with a Philippine resupply mission on October 22 at the Second Thomas Shoal and China's unsafe interception of a U.S. aircraft on October 24.
• The South China Sea is a highly disputed region, with conflicting territorial claims by China, Taiwan, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. Since 2013, China has built artificial islands totaling close to 3000 acres on seven coral reefs it occupies in the sea’s Spratly Islands.

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The Japan Times South China Morning Post Reuters United States Department of State