Senior defense officers of Japan and China met Monday in Beijing, restarting in-person exchanges that had been suspended since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic with the program aimed at building confidence and preventing incidents, according to an organizer.
A delegation of 13 senior Self-Defense Forces members led by Capt. Atsushi Yanagita of the Joint Staff exchanged views with some 10 officials of the China Institute for International Strategic Studies, a think tank related to the People's Liberation Army (PLA), on topics including bilateral relations.
The SDF officers also met with Lt. Gen. Jing Jianfeng, deputy chief of staff of the Joint Staff Department of China's Central Military Commission, according to the nonprofit Sasakawa Peace Foundation.