Chinese senior military official leaves for U.S. visit
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E-mail Xinhua, May 16, 2011
China's Chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Chen Bingde headed a high-ranking delegation Sunday for a week-long official visit to the United States.
Chen's visit, the first in seven years by a PLA chief of the general staff, is part of the efforts to implement the consensus reached by Chinese President Hu Jintao and his U.S. counterpart, President Barack Obama.
In addition to talks with Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chen will meet with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs Tom Donilon.
Chen will also deliver a speech at the National Defense University.
China expects to promote the establishment of a new-type military relationship with the United States through Chen's visit, featuring mutual respect and reciprocal beneficial cooperation, Qian Lihua, director of the Foreign Affairs Office with the National Defense Ministry, said in an earlier interview.
Chen's entourage includes a political commissar of the Second Artillery Force, deputy commanders of Military Area Commands and an intelligence department chief of the General Staff Headquarters, among others.
Chen will visit Naval Station Norfolk, Fort Stewart, Nellis Air Force Base and the US Army's National Training Center -- some of which have not been opened to visiting military leaders for years -- as part of the U.S.high-profile reception.
"It demonstrates the importance Admiral Mullen attaches to Chen's visit and the positive attitude the United States has to developing relations between the two militaries," said Huang Xueping, an official with the National Defense Ministry.
Chen will address China's position on three major obstacles hindering China-U.S. military relations during his visit, said Qian.
The three obstacles refer to the U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, frequent reconnaissance by U.S. naval ships and aircraft in the waters and airspace of China's exclusive economic zones, and the restrictions imposed by some U.S. domestic laws on exchanges and technical cooperation between the Chinese and U.S. armed forces.
"China hopes the U.S. will respect China's reasonable concern on the three issues and adopt feasible measures to resolve them," he said.
With regards to developing bilateral military ties, China has its bottom line, which features mutual respect, mutual trust, equality and reciprocity, said Qian.
So far, China and the U.S. have resumed military exchanges. Gates' visit to China in January helped mend bilateral military ties after several controversies last year. Also, the defense ministries of China and the United States held their seventh working-level meeting in April.
The just concluded China-U.S. Strategic Security Dialogue in Washington also included representatives from military departments of both countries.
U.S. military universities sent delegations to China in March and April.
The PLA Military Band is now making its first ever visit to the U.S. since the two countries forged diplomatic relations in 1979.
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