China said Tuesday that US arms sales to Taiwan were the biggest obstacle to defence ties between Beijing and Washington as military commanders met in their first high-level contact in months.
Ma Xiaotian, deputy head of the People's Liberation Army general staff, made the comments when he met US Pacific Command chief Admiral Robert Willard on the sidelines of key Sino-US talks in Beijing, state Xinhua news agency reported.
The meeting was the first high-ranking military talks between the two sides since Beijing in January suspended all such exchanges in protest over US arms sales to Taiwan.
China regards Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary, even though the two sides have been split since the end of a civil war in 1949. As such, China opposes any weapons sales to the island.
In Beijing, the two sides were also likely to have discussed mounting tension on the Korean peninsula after a multinational panel of investigators said a North Korean submarine torpedoed a South Korean warship in March, killing 46 sailors.
Seoul has cut off trade with the North and pledged to take the matter before the UN Security Council. Pyongyang has denied any involvement in the sinking of the Cheonan and threatened "all-out war" if it is punished.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in town for the annual Strategic and Economic Dialogue, said Tuesday that Washington would work with China and others to "fashion an effective and appropriate response" to the crisis.
China also said it was ready to work with others on the issue, although it has so far refused to condemn Pyongyang over the incident.
Beijing is North Korea's closest ally and its support as a veto-wielding member of the UN Security Council is viewed as pivotal for any tough response against Pyongyang.
"We are working hard to avoid an escalation," Clinton told reporters Monday.
"This is a highly precarious situation that the North Koreans have caused in the region, one that every country that neighbours or is in proximity to North Korea understands must be contained," she said.
"I can say the Chinese recognise the gravity of the situation we face," Clinton said, noting that Chinese officials also "understand the reaction by the South Koreans".
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