China defence minister to meet PM Wong, visit Changi Naval Base

SINGAPORE: China's Defence Minister Dong Jun will meet Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean during his introductory visit to the country.

He will also be attending the Shangri-La Dialogue during his visit, which runs from Thursday (May 30) to Sunday, the Ministry of Defence, Singapore (MINDEF) said in a news release.

Mr Dong was welcomed by a guard of honour at MINDEF on Thursday morning before co-chairing the third Singapore-China Defence Ministers’ Dialogue with Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen.

During the dialogue, Mr Dong and Dr Ng reaffirmed the "positive momentum in the bilateral defence relationship, demonstrated through regular high-level exchanges, military-to-military interactions, and growing academic exchanges between the defence establishments".

"Both sides also expressed support for the conduct of the sixth edition of Exercise Cooperation between the Armies and the third edition of Exercise Maritime Cooperation between the Navies in China this year," MINDEF said.

"Such exercises allow both sides to strengthen professional and people-to-people ties, as well as enhance mutual trust and understanding. Both Ministers also exchanged views on global and regional security issues."

Mr Dong will also visit Changi Naval Base, where he will visit the Republic of Singapore Navy’s Formidable-class frigate RSS Steadfast as well as the Singapore Navy Museum. 

MINDEF noted that the navy's Formidable-class frigates have exercised with the People’s Liberation Army Navy on multiple occasions, most recently in 2023.

Mr Dong’s visit "underscores the longstanding, warm and friendly bilateral defence relations between Singapore and China", MINDEF said.

He is also due to speak at a plenary session titled China’s Approach to Global Security on Sunday during the Shangri-La Dialogue.

US-CHINA TALKS

Mr Dong and his American counterpart, Lloyd Austin, are set to hold rare direct talks this weekend, offering hopes of further military dialogue aimed at preventing flashpoint disputes. 

The expected meeting at the Shangri-La Dialogue will be the first substantive face-to-face talks between their countries' defence chiefs in 18 months.

This year marks the 21st edition of the Shangri-La Dialogue. 

The security forum is an annual gathering of defence chiefs from around the world that has, in recent years, become a barometer of US-China relations.

The summit begins on Friday and will come a week after China held military drills around Taiwan and warned of war over the island.

The dispute over US-backed Taiwan is the highest-profile of many rows between the global powers.

Beijing is also furious over Washington's deepening defence ties in the Asia-Pacific, particularly with the Philippines.

China has in recent years grown increasingly assertive in staking its claims in the contested South China Sea, including by building artificial islands and militarising them.

It effectively suspended military talks with the United States in late 2022 in response to then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan.

The two sides agreed after a summit between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden in November last year to restart high-level military talks.

Mr Austin and Mr Dong then spoke over the phone in April.

Their meeting in Singapore - announced by the Pentagon last week - would be the most substantial encounter on defence since the presidential summit.