As expectations grow that the United States Navy will directly challenge Beijing’s South China Sea claims, China is engaging in some serious image-building for its own military by hosting two international security forums this week.

The events kick off today with an informal meeting of defence ministers from the 10-member Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN) — four of which exercise claims to seas and islands in the South China Sea that clash with Beijing’s own. It is the first time China has hosted such a meeting.

That will be followed by the Xiangshan Forum, at which analysts, military leaders and others from around the globe will grapple with Asian-Pacific security, maritime issues and anti-terrorism.

… “China wants to use these sorts of forums to promote China’s views, explain China’s policies and improve China’s security image,” said regional security expert Li Mingjiang of Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University.