US, China Defense Chiefs Talk to Bridge Trust Gap

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Chinese opposite number for the first time in nearly 18 months as both countries continued a series of recent engagements in the name of avoiding conflict. “Secretary Austin emphasized the importance of continuing to open lines of military-to-military communication between the United States and the PRC,” Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, said in a readout released on Tuesday, referring to the People’s Republic of China. In Beijing’s account of the call published the following morning, Adm. Dong Jun, who was appointed China’s national defense minister in December, stressed the importance…