US Navy Warship to Visit ChinaThe US Navy guided-missile cruiser Chancellorsville will visit Qingdao, China, in August as part of a series of such visits between the two countries, the Defence Department said Tuesday in Washington.The announcement of the Aug. 2-5 visit followed a statement by Washington and Beijing that Chinese warships will soon visit Hawaii and Seattle. Defence Secretary William Cohen visited China this month as the two nations renewed military-to-military ties following a freeze after the 1999 bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade by US warplanes during NATO's air strike against Yugoslavia. The Pentagon said the visit by the Chancellorsville, based in Yokosuka, Japan, to Qingdao will coincide with a July 31-Aug. 5 visit to Beijing and Qingdao by Adm. Thomas Fargo, commander of the US Pacific Fleet. Tuesday's announcement said the US Navy, in cooperation with China's People's Liberation Army, has developed a series of events and meetings to build mutual understanding in maritime safety, communications and search and rescue. They include high-level exchanges such as Fargo's visit, reciprocal port calls and periodic consultation between Navy counterparts. |
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