China Rejects US Request for Defense Chiefs Meeting

China has rejected a request from the United States for a meeting between the countries’ defense chiefs, the Pentagon said. The meeting was suggested between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual security forum being held in Singapore from June 2 to 4. The Pentagon says the sanctions on Li do not prevent Austin from meeting with him. U.S.-China relations have been strained since Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a trip to Beijing in February after a Chinese surveillance balloon was shot down over U.S. territory by the military.