Chinese military snubbed invite to defence conference, says senior US admiral

“However, Beijing feels that Washington has turned a deaf ear to those concerns, and the US navy continues its provocation by sending aircraft to fly over the Taiwan Strait,” Zhou said, referring to the flyover of a P-8A Poseidon last week.

“China feels disheartened because senior US officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, all claimed that they don’t want conflict between the two countries,” Zhou continued.

“But until now, Washington has not taken any steps to alleviate tensions such as lifting the sanctions against Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu.”

Li was sanctioned in 2018 for his alleged role, as head of the PLA’s Equipment Development Department, in securing the transfer of Russian jets and missiles to China.

An academic from the PLA’s Academy of Military Sciences contrasted the Aquilino snub with the warm welcome Beijing gave the former secretary of state Henry Kissinger this week, who met Li during the visit.

“It’s extremely rare for a Chinese defence minister to meet a former secretary of state, and I believe it was Kissinger who requested the meeting with Li, because he is trusted by the Pentagon to help push for the resumption of the dialogue with the PLA,” said the academic who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Kissinger has visited China more than 100 times, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday, including his secret trip to Beijing in July 1971, which paved the way for Richard Nixon’s icebreaking visit to China the following year.