From AFP-JIJI
WASHINGTON – China’s military chief was expected to tour two American warships and a Marine Corps facility Tuesday as part of a four-day U.S. visit amid heightened tensions between Beijing and several of its neighbors over disputed territories.
An honor guard during a welcoming ceremony for Turkmenistan’s president in Beijing on Monday. | FEMALE SOLDIERS TOOK PART FOR THE FIRST TIME REUTERS
Gen. Fang Fenghui, chief of the People’s Liberation Army general staff, is due later this week to hold talks with his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Martin Dempsey. The talks are expected to touch on an escalation in a maritime standoff between China and Vietnam, U.S. officials said.
Tensions spiked after Beijing said it would relocate a deep-water oil rig to a disputed area of the South China Sea, with Hanoi saying Chinese vessels rammed its patrol ships and turned a water cannon on them.
China has rejected criticism from Washington over its dispute with Vietnam as “irresponsible” while a U.S. diplomat has voiced concern about “dangerous conduct at sea.”
China’s clash with Vietnam is the latest in a series of disagreements between Beijing and its Asian neighbors over territory in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims almost in its entirety.
The United States, anxious about Beijing’s growing military might in the strategic area, has suggested China engaged in intimidation of its neighbors and has bolstered its defense ties in the region.
