White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan stated on Sunday that U.S. President Joe Biden aims to renew military-to-military connections with China.

This announcement comes just days before the scheduled in-person meeting between President Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The meeting is set to take place during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco on Wednesday.

It marks the first face-to-face encounter between Biden and Xi in a year and only the second in-person meeting between the two leaders since Biden assumed office in January 2021, Reuters reported.

“The president is determined to see the re-establishment of military-to-military ties because he believes it’s in the U.S. national security interest,” Sullivan said in an interview with CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “We need those lines of communication so that there aren’t mistakes or miscalculations or miscommunication.”

Sullivan said restored military ties could take place at every level from senior leadership to the tactical operational level, as well “on the water and in the air in the Indo-Pacific.”

Written by B.C. Begley