China’s military chief was to tour US warships yesterday at the start of a four-day visit to the US that comes amid heightened tensions between Beijing and its Southeast Asian neighbors over territorial disputes.
An escalating maritime feud between China and Vietnam is expected to come up when General Fang Fenghui (房峰輝), chief of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army general staff, holds talks this week with his US counterpart, US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Martin Dempsey, officials said.
Tensions between China and Vietnam 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 fired water cannons at them.
China has rejected criticism from Washington over its dispute with Vietnam as “irresponsible” while a US 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 US, 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.
The Pentagon said Fang’s visits was aimed at deepening ties between the two countries’ militaries, as it comes after a similar visit to China last year by Dempsey.
Fang’s trip begins in San Diego, California, where he will visit an aircraft carrier, the USS Ronald Reagan, a new littoral combat ship, the USS Coronado, and a US Marine Corps recruitment depot.
Tomorrow, the US military is to roll out the red carpet for Fang with a full honors ceremony at the Pentagon, where he will hold talks with Dempsey and then take part in a joint press conference.
The Chinese officer is also due to travel to Fort Bragg, North Carolina before wrapping up his trip in New York.
The visits came as China’s state-run media called for Beijing’s territorial challengers to be made to pay an “unaffordable price.”
The state-run China Daily accused Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam of worsening situations in the region, encouraged by “malicious third parties.”
“Beijing must make sure that every claimant knows blackmail and extortion will not work, and that it will not compromise its territorial integrity,” it said.
“A rat will not be pacified when we hesitate to pelt it for fear of smashing the vase beside it,” the newspaper added.
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