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US national security advisor to visit China next week
September 3, 2014, 8:26 am

Rice will pay a visit from Sunday to Tuesday at the invitation of Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi, according to Chinese spokesman Qin Gang [AP]

Rice will pay a visit from Sunday to Tuesday at the invitation of Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi, according to Chinese spokesman Qin Gang [AP]

US President Barack Obama’s national security advisor, Susan Rice, will be in China next week to exchange views on China-US ties, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said on Wednesday.

Her trip comes ahead of a possible meeting between Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the UN General Assembly later this month.

Rice will pay a visit from Sunday to Tuesday at the invitation of Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi, according to Chinese spokesman Qin Gang.

The two sides will exchange views on the China-US relationship and other important issues of mutual concern, Qin said.

An ADIZ (Air defence identification zone) China set up in November over portions of the East China Sea disputed with Japan had increased tensions between Washington and Beijing. A US Navy spy plane was “intercepted” earlier last month by a Chinese military jet. China has asked the US stop frequent surveillance flights intended to closely watch the Chinese territory after Washington accused a Chinese jet of veering too close to a US surveillance plane.

“The reason for accidents is mass and large-scale surveillance of China’s territory by the United States, which puts the aerial and sea security of both sides,” said China’s Defense Ministry spokesperson Yang Yujun.

China’s Defence Ministry said in August that a US anti-submarine plane and a patrol aircraft flew to an airspace about 220 kilometers east of China’s Hainan Island to conduct close-in surveillance Tuesday morning, and then a Chinese fighter jet took off to “make regular identification and verification”.

Meanwhile, in Washington on Wednesday, the White House said Rice will visit China for consultations over “a range of bilateral, regional and global issues.”

“She will underscore the United States’ commitment to building a productive relationship between our two countries,” National Security Council Spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement.

Source: Agencies