Senior defense officials from China and Russia used a security forum in Beijing on Monday to single out the U.S. for allegedly fanning the flames of war ¡ª criticism that came as the Chinese military¡¯s No. 2 signaled an openness to restoring high-level military channels with the Pentagon.

The second day of the Beijing Xiangshan Forum, billed by some as China¡¯s answer to the West¡¯s annual Shangri-La Dialogue regional security meeting in Singapore, played host to defense and military delegations from around the globe, including from Russia and the United States.

Delivering the forum¡¯s keynote speech, the powerful vice chairman of China¡¯s Central Military Commission, Gen. Zhang Youxia, unleashed a volley of veiled criticism at the U.S. and its allies for attempting to sow turbulence in the region and even inside China.