Center for a New American Security

China and the United States held their third annual bilateral dialogue in Washington, DC this week. In addition to economic issues that have always been part of the conversation, the two countries also placed security issues on the agenda for the first time. Although some saw the talks as successful, while others remained skeptical, one fact remains indisputable: the issues we discuss on this blog featured prominently in the dialogue. Indeed, of the 47 outcomes the United States and China listed in their final statement on the dialogue, nearly half directly pertained to natural security. These included 17 on clean energy and climate issues, 3 on other energy security initiatives and 3 on food security. Other topics like maritime security and the Law of the Sea, both of which are central to the South China Sea project we are working on, were also addressed this week.

One topic that was noticeably absent from the talks, at least publically, was rare earth elements. Perhaps they decided that between the blog posts, bibliography, op-eds and the new CNAS report Christine authored, we had that subject covered this week.   

Photo: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner with their Chinese counterparts at the end of the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue on May 10, 2011. Courtesy of the U.S. State Department.