Keating calls for more transparency from China

[unhappycamper]

Adm. Timothy Keating, left, shakes hands with Chinese Chief of General Staff Department Gen. Chen Bingde upon arrival at the Ba Yi Building in Beijing on Jan. 14. The U.S. Pacific Command commander met Chinese officials Jan. 14 on his first visit since Beijing blocked port calls by an aircraft carrier and other Navy ships last year.


Keating calls for more transparency from China
By Henry Sanderson - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday Jan 15, 2008 14:56:02 EST

BEIJING — The U.S. military’s Asia-Pacific commander said Tuesday that China needs to be more open about its military plans, citing its denial of a port call for U.S. ships in Hong Kong as an example of its lack of transparency.

China has rapidly expanded its military in recent years, raising concerns in neighboring countries and in the United States, which voiced displeasure in November when Beijing rejected a Hong Kong port call by the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk and five ships accompanying it.

The same week, two U.S. Navy minesweepers also were turned away after seeking shelter during a storm.

“Increased transparency can yield to greater trust. That reduces the potential for misunderstanding, misunderstanding can lead to conflict or crisis, and that is very much not in our interest. We want peace and stability in the region,” Adm. Timothy Keating, the head of the U.S. Pacific Command, told reporters Tuesday.

Keating was on a four-day visit to China, his second since taking up his post early last year.


Rest of article at: http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/01/ap_keatingchina_080115/