Defense Secretary Ash Carter welcomed Gen. Fan Changlong, vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission, to the Pentagon Thursday to discuss “areas of mutual interest” to both nations, said Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren.
Given the heightened tensions driven by China’s development of a military installation on manmade islands in the South China Sea, and U.S. accusations of Chinese involvement in a massive data intrusion into the personnel files of U.S. federal employees, there was no interaction with the media, nor will there be a joint press conference.
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The “Chinese did request that there not be a lot of media attention around this visit,” Warren said. The Chinese delegation also visited a military base in Texas and the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan.
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A Defense Department statement released after the visit said the two discussed “key issues of mutual concern including military-to-military relations, regional security, and maritime issues, including land reclamation in the South China Sea.
“Secretary Carter reiterated U.S. concerns on the South China Sea, and called on China and all claimants to implement a lasting halt on land reclamation, cease further militarization, and pursue a peaceful resolution of territorial disputes in accordance with international law,” the statement said. “Secretary Carter reaffirmed his commitment to reach consensus on the air-to-air annex to the Rules of Behavior for the Safety of Air and Maritime Encounters Memorandum of Understanding by September of this year. This annex will reduce the risk of miscalculation or accidents when the two countries’ aircraft operate in close proximity.”
