Daily Caller: ‘That’s Really Dangerous’: Defense Official Sounds Alarm After China Fails To Pick Up Crisis Hotline
Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe declined calls from his American counterpart after an Air Force-22 downed a Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday, creating a “really dangerous” situation, U.S. defense officials said Thursday.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tried to contact Fenghe via a special crisis line, hoping to discuss the situation and hopefully ease tensions, according to the Associated Press.
Fenghe declined to take the call after the U.S. Air Force shot balloon down on Feb. 4, the Pentagon said following the incident. A spokesperson for China’s defense ministry said in a statement Thursday that the minister refused the call because the U.S. had “not created the proper atmosphere,” for the two parties to dialogue and had “seriously violated international norms and set a pernicious precedent,” AP reported.
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Update: ‘It just rang’: In crises, US-China hotline goes unanswered (AP)
WNU Editor: This is nothing new. The U.S. - China military hotline has been broken for the past few years as this 2021 Politico article explains .... ‘Spiral into crisis’: The U.S.-China military hotline is dangerously broken (Politico). And the problems are deeper than just not having someone answer the "hotline" .... Another 'Hotline' with China Isn't the Answer (RAND).