The 10th Xiangshan Forum, themed "Common Security, Lasting Peace," was held at the Beijing International Convention Center from October 29th to 31st, 2023. A total of 1,800 people attended the meeting with 99 official delegations, including 22 ministers of defense, 14 chiefs of defense staff (commanders of defense force), representatives from six international organizations and more than 700 delegates and observers. Previous forums were chaired by China’s defense minister, who would deliver a keynote speech and meet with visiting delegations. However, former Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu was removed from his positions as state councilor and defense minister, and his successor has not yet been announced. In the end, Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), presided over the meeting, and Liu Zhenli, chief of staff of the Joint Staff Department of the CMC, attended the opening ceremony.
Before the meeting, Zhang held talks with Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Chasamone Chanyalath, Mongolian Defense Minister Gursediin Saikhanbayar, Myanmar Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Tin Aung San, East Timor Defense Minister Pedro Klamar Fuik, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. He Weidong, vice chairman of the CMC, also held talks with Vietnamese Defense Minister Phan Van Giang.
Zhang emphasized in his opening remarks that the Chinese armed forces are willing to join hands with all parties to continuously deepen mutual trust on security issues, improve security architecture, enhance security governance, promote security cooperation and implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative. He also stated that China adheres to the principle of resolving disputes through dialogue and consultation and that no country should impose its own will on others, put its own benefits above those of others, ensure its own security at the cost of others' security or deliberately provoke other countries on major sensitive issues.
The organizers of the 10th Beijing Xiangshan Forum invited the United States to send representatives to participate. Washington sent Cynthia Carras, the Defense Department’s principal director for China, Taiwan and Mongolia, to attend the forum and head the U.S. delegation. Former US Assistant Secretary of Defense for China Chad Sbragia participated in forum activities as an expert and scholar. China was obviously disappointed that the U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin did not attend the meeting. Despite their many criticisms of the U.S., People’s Liberation Army (PLA) generals still underlined the need to maintain contact and dialogue with the US military at the working level at the forum. The Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Washington at the invitation of the U.S., where he met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, national security officials and U.S. President Joe Biden, trying to raise the possibility of meeting between Biden and Xi Jinping in mid-November. In other words, the United States and China are managing their contradictions and trying to avoid unexpected incidents while competing and confronting each other in various fields, Relations between China and the U.S. can be best described as "fight without breaking" as the two sides seek opportunities to move forward amid their confrontation.
Zhang Youxia strongly stated that “any attempt to sever Taiwan from China, no matter by whom or in what form, will be resolutely rejected and deterred by the Chinese armed forces” in his opening remarks at the forum. He Lei, former vice president of the PLA Academy of Military Sciences, emphasized that “once the Chinese government is forced to use force to resolve the Taiwan issue, it will be a war for reunification, a just and legitimate war supported and participated in by the Chinese people and a war to crush foreign interference." An overview of remarks made by PLA representatives at the forum shows that they regarded the Taiwan issue as China’s internal issue and expressed a much tougher position on handling the Taiwan issue than past narratives.
The CCP wanted to use the Beijing Xiangshan Forum to build a military circle of friends, counterbalance the influence of the US military and have more say in military issues outside European countries and the U.S. and in countries and regions in the southern hemisphere. China, therefore, tried to use the forum to provide a platform for dialogue between parties in conflict like Israel and Palestine as well as Russia and Ukraine.
Li Shangfu was removed from his positions as defense minister, state councilor and a member of the state CMC by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC). The third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Committee will address the issue of Li’s positions as a member of the Central Committee and the CPC Central Military Commission. Only after Li is removed from the two positions will the process of appointing a new defense minister start. Although holding the prestigious position of state councilor, China's defense minister is only responsible for military diplomacy. Liu Zhenli is said to be a top contender for the position, Wu Yanan (with a doctoral degree), currently serving at the Joint Operations Command Center of the CMC, is also a possible candidate. In addition, after completing the appointment process of China’s new defense minister, the obstacle (Li Shangfu was sanctioned by the U.S.) to a meeting between the Chinese defense minister and the U.S. defense secretary will naturally disappear. This will be conducive to arranging a U.S.-China defense ministerial meeting and reopening the hotline communication channel.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at the forum that "the state-to-state relationship between Moscow and Beijing can serve as a model and has become increasingly attractive for other countries. Our circle of friends and the circle of like-minded people who do not want to be entangled in a confrontational agenda collectively imposed by the West are continuously expanding." Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, Russia has been mired in war. Facing sanctions and isolation from European and North American countries, Russia has gradually formed an anti-Western united front with China, North Korea and Iran. Although Russia and China claim that they have not formed a military alliance, bilateral military cooperation has become more comprehensive. Such a cooperative relationship is stronger than an alliance. China tries to meet Russia's needs without defying the requests of Europe and the U.S.
(Tai-yuan Yang, Contract Research Fellow of the Institute of Chinese Communist Studies)
(Translated to English by Cindy Li)
