China, US militaries to deepen trust

Militaries from China and the United States on Thursday agreed to deepen mutual trust and exchanges, manage risks and allow military relations to become a stabilizing factor for bilateral ties.

The consensus was made between General Wei Fenghe, Chinese State Councilor and Minister of National Defense, and US Secretary of Defense James Mattis during a meeting on the sidelines of the 5th ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus in Singapore, which runs from Wednesday to Sunday.

Experts said the positive rhetoric from the meeting can defuse tension in the recently rocky Sino-US military relations. However, "concrete and sincere" efforts from the US side are needed to continue the positive development of Sino-US military relations.