White House spokesman John Kirby stated on Friday that the US is “eager” to pick up the military-to-military discussions with China that had been on hold.

Kirby told reporters on Air Force One that the reason for the lack of communication could be that U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin does not have a designated Chinese equivalent.

At a carefully watched summit in California this month, U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese Leader Xi Jinping decided to reestablish their communication, which had been cut off following House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s August 2022 travel to Taiwan.

Biden aides have said that the talks can prevent a range of differences between the countries, including in the South China Sea and towards Taiwan, from veering into conflict.

The militaries of the U.S. and China have had a number of near-misses and acrimonious exchanges over the past year.