China Allows U.S. Port Call in Hong Kong
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/29/world/asia/29ship.html
January 29, 2008
China Allows U.S. Port Call in Hong Kong
By DAVID LAGUE [PRC] [China] [China’s aggressive military buildup and modernization] [satellite particularly critical due to early 2007 launch of satellite killer] [followup] [on top of recent unpleasantness between US and PRC] [now as the KMT makes comeback in Taiwan—something mainland Chinese ought to embrace since KMT also see Taiwan as part of China—China pushing the U.S. to do more to reign in seperatists] [interesting: China’s renewed confidence] [this is followup to end of last year when carrier group denied previously approved port call] [*****] [use psci 350] [use ir text]
BEIJING — China on Monday allowed a United States warship to make a port call in Hong Kong, two months after it turned away an American aircraft carrier battle group and set off a diplomatic dispute between the countries.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/29/world/asia/29ship.html
January 29, 2008
China Allows U.S. Port Call in Hong Kong
By DAVID LAGUE [PRC] [China] [China’s aggressive military buildup and modernization] [satellite particularly critical due to early 2007 launch of satellite killer] [followup] [on top of recent unpleasantness between US and PRC] [now as the KMT makes comeback in Taiwan—something mainland Chinese ought to embrace since KMT also see Taiwan as part of China—China pushing the U.S. to do more to reign in seperatists] [interesting: China’s renewed confidence] [this is followup to end of last year when carrier group denied previously approved port call] [*****] [use psci 350] [use ir text]
BEIJING — China on Monday allowed a United States warship to make a port call in Hong Kong, two months after it turned away an American aircraft carrier battle group and set off a diplomatic dispute between the countries.
The Blue Ridge, an amphibious command ship and the flagship of the Seventh Fleet, and its 700 crew members were expected to stay in Hong Kong for a few days, according to a spokesman for the American Consulate there.
The sheltered harbor of Hong Kong, a former British colony, is a regular recreation stop for the Navy. Military analysts said the decision to allow ship visits to resume was an acknowledgment that Beijing wanted to avoid further tension in a sometimes troubled military relationship.
“In terms of basic naval confidence-building, port visits are a positive factor in forming good relations between navies,” said Sam Bateman, a maritime expert at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. “There is really no good reason for China to flex its muscles and deny port visits to the Americans.”
The Bush administration lodged a formal protest after China unexpectedly denied a Thanksgiving port visit to Hong Kong by the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk and its supporting ships.
With the families of hundreds of crew members waiting in Hong Kong, the fleet returned to its home port in Japan.
Earlier in the same week, China also refused permission for two American minesweepers to seek refuge in Hong Kong from storms in the South China Sea, a move that also drew a strong objection from Washington.
Beijing has not publicly explained its reasons, but a report in the state-controlled news media last year said the decisions were in retaliation for a decision by the Bush administration to upgrade Taiwan’s Patriot antimissile batteries. China considers Taiwan a renegade province.
After talks in Beijing this month with senior Chinese military officers, the commander of American forces in the Pacific, Adm. Timothy J. Keating, predicted that the Blue Ridge visit would go ahead. [*****] [each side made its points]
Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company