1 June 2024

Can a U.S.-China Military Hotline Stop the Downward Spiral?

James Crabtree

It may not be full-on détente, but China and the United States are entering a new, tentatively positive diplomatic moment. New channels of communication appear to be stabilizing a mutual downward spiral between the two superpowers that threatened to propel them inevitably toward conflict. The latest channel to reopen is likely to come next month, when U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is set to meet his Chinese counterpart, Dong Jun, for the first time at the IISS Shangri La Dialogue in Singapore. U.S.-Chinese preparatory discussions for the meeting have been taking place over recent weeks, even as relations remain strained.

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