U.S. and China hold defense talks ahead of Taiwan election

WASHINGTON -- Senior U.S. and Chinese defense officials held a two-day dialogue that ended Tuesday, the latest effort to manage tensions just days before Taiwan's presidential election.

The U.S. side "highlighted the importance of maintaining open lines of military-to-military communication in order to prevent competition from veering into conflict," Pentagon spokesperson Martin Meiners said in a statement, adding that the two countries will seek “future engagements between defense and military officials at multiple levels.”