According to Reuters, Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun may skip the upcoming Shangri-La Dialogue where U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is scheduled to make a keynote speech.
Dong had previously drawn attention and ridicule after making harsh remarks about Taiwan during the forum.
Separately, Pakistani Chief of Army Staff and Commander of the Armed Forces Asim Munir accompanied the Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on a visit to China from May 23-26.
Their visit focused on the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), regional stability, and the Iran war. However, there were no reports of Defense Minister Dong Jun making any public appearances during the trip.
Reports say Dong Jun may miss the Shangri-La Dialogue
The annual Shangri-La Dialogue, organized by the British think tank International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), will be held in Singapore from May 29 to 31, 2026. Key topics expected to dominate this year’s forum include the situation in the Middle East and tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
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On May 26, Bloomberg, citing informed sources, reported that Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun is very likely to miss the Shangri-La Dialogue. One anonymous source said that Beijing is expected to send a lower-level delegation composed of representatives from China’s National Defense University instead.
However, the source did not explain why Dong Jun might be absent and noted that the arrangement could still change, as Chinese authorities typically confirm the list of attending officials only one or two days before such events.
In response to the reports, the IISS said only that it had extended an invitation to China as usual and that it looked forward to welcoming representatives from all countries.
The security summit provides a rare opportunity for military officials in the Indo-Pacific region to engage in direct exchanges. According to past practice, the U.S. defense secretary is scheduled to deliver a keynote speech on the morning of May 30, while China’s defense minister is usually scheduled to speak on May 31.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will attend this year’s Shangri-La Dialogue. From May 13 to 15 this year, Hegseth accompanied U.S. President Donald Trump on a visit to China, during which he also had a brief banquet conversation with Dong Jun through interpreters.
Dong Jun previously made harsh remarks about Taiwan
Notably, Dong Jun appears to have deliberately demonstrated public support for Xi Jinping’s stance on the possible use of force against Taiwan.
According to the Strait Times, on June 2, 2024, while attending the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Dong claimed that Taiwan was like “the praying mantis that tries to block a cart with its arm” in the face of the Chinese military. He further declared that anyone who dares to separate Taiwan from China will be “crushed to pieces.”
On September 18, 2025, during a keynote speech at the Beijing Xiangshan Forum, Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun stated: “Taiwan’s return to China is an important part of the outcomes of the victory in World War II and the postwar international order. We will never allow any Taiwan independence separatist plot to succeed and are always prepared to defeat any external military interference.”
On the same day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan) issued a statement “firmly and unequivocally rejecting” Dong Jun’s remarks.
