US-China tensions: American troops not planning attack on Chinese territory, Beijing says
- Rumours of possible invasion began after US troops were seen wearing ‘drone over China’ patch on their uniforms during exercise in September
- But China’s defence ministry says matter was cleared up in recent talks with US Defence Secretary Mark Esper
In an apparent bid to ease tensions in the region, China’s defence ministry said the two sides had recently held talks on crisis management and planned to hold a maritime security dialogue before the end of the year.
“US Defence Secretary [Mark] Esper clarified the issue through the military diplomacy channel and said the reports were inconsistent with the facts,” ministry spokesman Wu Qian said, without saying to whom Esper spoke.
Suggestions that the US might be planning an attack began when American media outlets reported on an exercise in California in September involving US troops simulating an island attack. The troops involved wore uniforms adorned with a patch showing an MQ-9 Reaper drone superimposed over a map of China in silhouette.
The reports prompted an angry response from China’s state media, with the nationalist tabloid Global Times calling it “an extremely arrogant provocation”.
Despite the fury, Wu said the matter had now been resolved.
“The US side does not have the intention to create a military crisis and is willing to build stable, constructive, results-oriented ties with the Chinese side,” he said.
“Under the current circumstances, it is important for the two militaries to maintain communication.”
Despite resolving the issue of the rumoured attack, Wu took the opportunity to reiterate Beijing’s warning to the US to end its provocative actions in the Asia-Pacific region.
“We called on the US side to match its words with its actions and fulfil its promises … stop military provocation against China, and stop actions that harm China’s core interests,” he said.
“China will resolutely fight back against anyone who dares to incite conflicts at sea.”
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Separately, Wu said the Chinese and US militaries held a virtual meeting on crisis management communication on Wednesday and Thursday, and would hold talks on humanitarian assistance in mid-November and on maritime security before the end of the year.
The US and Chinese militaries established a maritime security consultation mechanism in 1998 to prevent conflicts in the air and at sea. Its last meeting was in the east China city of Qingdao in June last year.
