WASHINGTON&nbsp;—&nbsp;US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin is expected to meet with China's defence minister during a conference in Singapore later this month, a US official said on Thursday (May 16).

The meeting will be the first substantial in-person engagement between US and Chinese defence chiefs in two years, though Austin and Chinese defence minister Dong Jun spoke by phone last month.

The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said while a meeting was planned, last minute changes could impact it.

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US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Brown, Jr [not pictured) testify before a House Appropriations Defence Subcommittee hearing on US President Biden's proposed budget request for the Department of Defence on Capitol Hill in Washington, US, April 17, 2024.

United States of America

Defence and military

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Reuters

WASHINGTON — US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin is expected to meet with China's defence minister during a conference in Singapore later this month, a US official said on Thursday (May 16). The meeting will be the first substantial in-person engagement between US and Chinese defence chiefs in two years, though Austin and Chinese defence minister Dong Jun spoke by phone...

US defence chief plans to meet with Chinese counterpart in Singapore, US official says