US and China hold ‘candid’ maritime military safety talks in Hawaii

The Chinese and US militaries held working group talks on maritime military safety in Hawaii on Thursday and Friday, both sides have announced, in the latest effort by the two geopolitical rivals to keep military-to-military communication channels open.The meeting marked the first military communication between Beijing and Washington since last month’s high-profile summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump in Beijing.A brief statement published by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy on its official WeChat account said representatives of the Chinese and US militaries “had candid and constructive exchanges on the current Maritime and Air Security situation between China and the US, on the basis of equality and respect”.