Shangri-La Dialogue: The US and China will have a fierce confrontation, the war in Ukraine will become the focus

The Shangri-La Dialogue, which attracts senior military officials, diplomats and arms manufacturers from around the world, will take place from June 10-12 in Singapore. This year’s Shangri-La Dialogue was reorganized after being postponed for two years because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Organizers say Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will speak online at the security forum as the conflict in Ukraine is expected to become the focus of the Shangri-La Dialogue.

On the sidelines of the summit, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe are expected to hold their first face-to-face meeting since President Joe Biden took office.

“We expect that meeting to focus on managing competition in regional and global issues,” a senior US official said.

Chinese media also said that Beijing will take the opportunity to attend the Shangri-La Dialogue to discuss cooperation with the US.

Mr. Austin and Mr. Wei are then likely to deliver speeches over the weekend to reaffirm their commitment to the Asia-Pacific region.

Relations between China and the United States have become more strained in recent months, as the world’s two largest economies clash over everything from Taiwan, Ukraine, China’s illegal militarization of the South China Sea, and China. East to Beijing’s efforts to expand its influence in the Pacific region.

“The key issue this year will certainly be the US-China competitive relationship. There is a new sense of urgency regarding the continued modernization of the Chinese military and the assertiveness that we see. in China over the past two years,” said Meia Nouwens, a senior fellow for Defense Policy and Military Modernization at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Although the Shangri-La Dialogue focuses on Asian security issues, the war in Ukraine is expected to remain the focus of the discussions. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced millions from their homes, fled their homeland, and turned Ukraine’s cities into ruins.

Ukraine will send a delegation to the security forum but the Russians will not attend, Reuters quoted a source familiar with the list of attendees.

Li Mingjiang, an associate professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore commented: “The Americans will take this opportunity to criticize China’s strategic partnership with Russia. But China will defend its relationship, stance and policies.”