Beijing–Washington hotline

[1] According to a report, China's Defense Ministry long resisted the idea of a direct line until June 2007, when General Zhang Qinsheng stated that China was ready to proceed with the establishment at the Shangri-La Dialogue security conference in Singapore.

[7] In September 2015, Chinese leader Xi Jinping and U.S. President Barack Obama announced agreements on a new military hotline to reduce the risks of accidental escalations between the two countries.

[13][14] According to U.S. Assistant Secretary Of State Frank Rose, an urgent safety mechanism was required due to the growing amount of potentially lethal space debris in orbit, as well as numerous undisclosed military satellite launches.

[13] The link was established amid tensions due to China ramping up tests of weapons designed to target the orbital networks upon which almost all US high-tech military capabilities depend.

[13] In November 2011, an editorial in the China Daily called for closer communication through a cyber red phone, especially in cases of an emergency concerning matters of cyberwarfare.