The US government says the leaders of the United States and China are planning to hold telephone talks in the coming weeks. It would be the first such summit call between US President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, since April.

The White House announced the plan in a statement after National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met in China on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The statement says that Sullivan and Wang "welcomed ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication."

The document says the two sides also agreed on the importance of regular military-to-military communication, and made arrangements for commanders to hold phone talks.

Sullivan reportedly mentioned the importance of maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

He also stressed the US commitment to defending its allies in the Indo-Pacific region, and expressed concern about China's "destabilizing" actions against Philippine maritime operations in the South China Sea.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Wang urged the US to stop arms sales to Taiwan and support a peaceful unification of China.

The ministry also said Wang demanded that Washington not support actions by the Philippines regarding territorial disputes between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea.