"The whole world has a stake in maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, the whole world," said Austin."The security of commercial shipping lanes and global supply chains depends on it."
The comments were part of a broader address that saw Austin rebuke China for not engaging in military talks. They come after Austin's Chinese counterpart — Minister of National Defense Li Shangfu — declined a meeting at the summit, although the two didat a dinner on Friday. The US and China remain at an impasse as a territorial dispute over Taiwan continues.
"I am deeply concerned that the PRC has been unwilling to engage more seriously on better mechanisms for crisis management between our two militaries," Austin said at the meeting,Shangfu did hit back at Austin, saying"China-US military relations are faced with difficulties and the responsibility lies entirely on the US side."
Not long after Austin's comments on Saturday, Reuters said a US and Canadian warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait, a routine occurrence that has nonetheless rankled Chinese officials in the past. Concerns around the Taiwan situation have escalated in recent months. Matthew Pottinger, who served as deputy national security adviser in the Trump administration, said in April that there's a