(Reuters) – A top Chinese general toured an American aircraft carrier on Tuesday at the start of a U.S. visit expected to expose tensions over territorial disputes between Beijing and U.S. allies in the South and East China Seas.
General Fang Fenghui, chief of the general staff of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, visited the nuclear-powered Ronald Reagan in San Diego, California, escorted by the head of the U.S. military’s Pacific Command, Admiral Samuel Locklear.
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Chinese military brass are no strangers to U.S. warships, including aircraft carriers, and PLA navy chief Admiral Wu Shengli visited the carrier Carl Vinson last year.
But Fang’s visit is the latest example of efforts by both countries to improve military ties as China ramps up defense spending, investing in sophisticated hardware, including “carrier killer” missiles, which Pentagon officials suspect are aimed at countering U.S. military capabilities.
Full article: Chinese general tours U.S. carrier as maritime tensions fester (Reuters)
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