BEIJING, Dec. 31 -- Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense (MND), briefly introduced the latest progress of the China-Japan maritime and air liaison mechanism on Thursday, when answering the reporter’ s question about the construction of maritime and air liaison mechanism mentioned in a recent video call between the Chinese and Japanese defense ministers.

Tan said that the maritime and air liaison mechanism between the Chinese and Japanese defense departments has been operating well since its establishment in 2018 and has played a positive role in maintaining peace and stability in the East China Sea. According to Tan, at present, after several rounds of consultations, the defense departments of the two countries have made positive progress on the direct telephone line under the maritime and air liaison mechanism. It is expected to start building as soon as possible.