The United States and China plan to establish military-to-military communications channels “to deconflict and deescalate” potential problems, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Saturday after talking with his Chinese counterpart.

In a post on X, Hegseth said he had a “positive meeting” with Admiral Dong Jun, China’s Minister of National Defense, in the wake of President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

During their talk, the two defense leaders agreed that the best path forward for the U.S. and China involves “peace, stability, and good relations.”

“Admiral Dong and I also agreed that we should set up military-to-military channels to deconflict and deescalate any problems that arise. We have more meetings on that coming soon. God bless both China and the USA!” Hegseth wrote, in part.

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Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says the U.S. and China will open “military-to-military” channels to prevent conflicts following positive meeting with Chinese counterpart Admiral Dong Jun. (Both: HASNOOR HUSSAIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Earlier Saturday, Hegseth attended a separate meeting in Malaysia with defense leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), where he urged them to push back against Beijing’s aggressive actions in the South China Sea.

“China’s sweeping territorial and maritime claims in the South China Sea fly in the face of their commitments to resolve disputes peacefully,” Hegseth said at the meeting, according to The Associated Press. 

“We seek peace. We do not seek conflict. But we must ensure that China is not seeking to dominate you or anybody else,” he added.

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The South China Sea remains volatile with Beijing, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei all claiming overlapping territories. 

A Chinese Coast Guard ship is seen closely shadowing the convoy of Filipino fishing boats and a Philippine Coast Guard ship, on May 16, 2024. (Martin San Diego for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

China’s maritime fleet has frequently clashed with the Philippines in the disputed waters, with Chinese officials recently describing the country as a “troublemaker” for staging naval and air drills with the U.S., Australia and New Zealand.

Hegseth defended the U.S. ally during the Saturday meeting by saying Beijing’s designation of the Scarborough Shoal – a territory seized from the Philippines in 2012 – as a “nature reserve” “yet another attempt to coerce new and expanded territorial and maritime claims at your expense.”

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The War Secretary then urged ASEAN to finalize the Code of Conduct with China and proposed creating a “shared maritime domain awareness” network and rapid-response systems to deter provocations – measures he said would ensure that any member facing “aggression and provocation is not alone.”

Two Philippine Air Force FA-50 fighter jets fly with two U.S. Air Force B-1 bomber aircraft during a joint patrol and training over the South China Sea on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2025. (Philippine Air Force via AP)

Hegseth also welcomed plans for an ASEAN-U.S. maritime exercise in December aimed at strengthening coordination and safeguarding freedom of navigation.