Military dialogue between China and the US resumes today with a two-day mid-level talk in Beijing, setting the tone for bilateral military ties between China and Barack Obama's administration.

Analysts expected both sides to discuss their security concerns - the core interests of which remain distinct - while trying to draft a timeline for formally recommencing military exchanges.

The exchanges were halted last October, following a proposal to sell $6.5 billion of arms to Taiwan made in the Bush administration's twilight period.