Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, State
Councilor, and Minister of National Defense of the People's
Republic of China, General Chi Haotian, will arrive in New York
today for an official two-week visit to the United States at the
invitation of his counterpart, Secretary of Defense William J.
Perry.
General Chi will be accompanied by his spouse and a 20-
member delegation including senior military leaders representing
the Peoples' Liberation Army General Staff and Logistics
Departments, Navy, Air Force, and Strategic Rocket Forces, as
well as the commander of the Guangzhou Military Region Command,
and a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
General Chi (pronounced CHIRR) will begin his visit at the
U. S. Military Academy at West Point.
Later, in New York City,
he will meet with representatives of the PRC mission to the
United Nations and attend a dinner of senior corporate, military,
and opinion leaders hosted by the U.S.-China National Committee.
Sunday, he will visit Gettysburg National Park, where Secretary
Perry will accompany him on a tour of the historic Civil War
battlefield.
General Chi will begin two days of talks in Washington,
D.C., Monday, including meetings at the Department of Defense
with the secretary of defense, the chairman of the joint chiefs
of staff, and the service chiefs. He will also have meetings with
senior White House and State Department officials. Additionally,
General Chi has been invited to a private breakfast sponsored by
the Center for Strategic and International Studies that will be
attended by members of Congress, former public officials, and
academics. He also intends to visit the National Defense
University, where he will meet with former U.S. secretaries of
defense and deliver a speech on Chinese security policies.
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Key topics for discussion during Minister Chi's stay in
Washington include a range of global and Asia-Pacific regional
security issues, as well as the future of bilateral military
relations.
The two sides will engage in a broad discussion of
their common interests as well as their disagreements in these
areas, so as to increase mutual understanding and enhance
prospects for cooperation.
Outside of Washington, General Chi's delegation will travel
to and observe U.S. Air Force and Navy facilities in Norfolk,
Va.; the Air University at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.; U.S.
Army ground force units at Ft. Hood, Texas; and the Cooperative
Monitoring Center at Sandia Lab in Albuquerque, N.M., where they
will discuss technologies which could be used to verify the
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty signed by both the United States
and the People's Republic China.
These activities will further
the objectives of increasing mutual understanding, promoting
military transparency, and identifying possible areas for future
military exchanges.
Additionally, during the delegation's travel outside of
Washington, the members will have a chance to more broadly see
various aspects of American society and culture, necessary to
comprehensively understand a nation's aspirations, capabilities,
and security interests.
General Chi and his delegation will conclude their visit in
Hawaii, where they will be hosted by Admiral Joseph W. Prueher,
commander-in-chief of the U. S. Pacific Command.
The delegation
will meet with representatives of the Pacific Command and will
engage in a summary discussion of strategic and military issues
of concern to both sides.
