Rumsfeld, speaking today at the Chinese Communist Party's leading training center, the Central Party School in Beijing, praised China's economic growth and said the United States would welcome a peaceful and prosperous China.
But he said uncertainty is raised by what he called the nontransparent nature of China's military buildup. Rumsfeld said a growth in power projection understandably causes other nations to question whether China's intentions are peaceful.
Rumsfeld said history suggests that greater openness in the military and economic spheres is tied to openness in the political sphere.
Rumsfeld, who is making his first official visit to China as U.S. defense secretary, was due to hold talks with President Hu Jintao and Defense Minister General Cao Gangchuan.
(Reuters/AP/AFP)
But he said uncertainty is raised by what he called the nontransparent nature of China's military buildup. Rumsfeld said a growth in power projection understandably causes other nations to question whether China's intentions are peaceful.
Rumsfeld said history suggests that greater openness in the military and economic spheres is tied to openness in the political sphere.
Rumsfeld, who is making his first official visit to China as U.S. defense secretary, was due to hold talks with President Hu Jintao and Defense Minister General Cao Gangchuan.
(Reuters/AP/AFP)