China wants US to explain military plans in Australia

BEIJING - As high-ranking military officers from China and the United States meet in Beijing on Wednesday for their annual defense consultative talks (DCT), Chinese experts said Beijing is likely to ask Washington to explain its plans to base US forces in Australia.

The meeting will also serve as a barometer to show how bilateral military ties have recovered since the US decision to sell arms to Taiwan in October cast a shadow over exchanges between the two armed forces, said US analysts.

"The US has always asked China to be transparent about its strategy. It is the US who should make its intentions clear," said Major General Luo Yuan, from the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Academy of Military Science.