China Raises 'Concern' Over U.S. Plan to Hold Joint Military Exercises With South Korea

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China Raises 'Concern' Over U.S. Plan to Hold Joint Military Exercises With South Korea

DANDONG China made its first official protest over plans by the U.S. and South Korea to hold joint military exercises involving the aircraft carrier USS George Washington in the Yellow Sea on Sunday. But Beijing's protest, in a statement from the Foreign Ministry Friday, was noticeably more restrained than when the U.S. announced similar plans, involving the same aircraft carrier, in July. The statement also appeared to offer all sides a face-saving compromise, by implying China did not oppose exercises outside its "exclusive economic zone," a term of international maritime law that generally extends 200 nautical miles from a country's coast. The restrained language, and the apparent diplomatic get-out, could reflect China's concern that the North Korean crisis will overshadow a planned trip to Washington in January by President Hu Jintao. "We hold a consistent and clear-cut stance on the issue," the statement quoted Hong Lei, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, as saying. "We oppose any party to take any military actions in our exclusive economic zone without permission." At a routine briefing on Thursday, Mr. Hong had said only that China was "concerned" over reports about the joint exercises Read more at www.hapblog.com

 

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