Bloomberg: China's Defense Minister Dong Jun Expected to Skip Shangri-La Dialogue

The Shangri-La Dialogue, a key annual security forum in the Asia-Pacific, will take place in Singapore from May 29 to 31. Bloomberg reported today, citing people familiar with the matter, that Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun is not expected to attend, marking his second consecutive absence. The report states that Beijing will send a lower-level delegation from the PLA National Defense University instead. Sources did not specify the reason for the absence, noting that plans could still change. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth will attend the forum. Dong's absence means that at a critical juncture in US-China relations, the two countries will miss another opportunity for direct high-level military communication.