Defense Talks With U.S. Help Strengthen Ties

U.S. and Chinese officials gave a boost to the recovering military ties between their countries by opening a round of high-level defense consultations.

Washington regards military ties with Beijing as a key part of their relations. But contacts were cut off after the collision of a U.S. Navy surveillance plane with a Chinese fighter jet three years ago, and are resuming slowly.

Delegations to the consultations were led by Douglas J. Feith, a U.S. undersecretary of defense, and Xiong Guangkai, deputy chief of general staff of the People’s Liberation Army.