U.S. doesn't say much about Naval stare down with China

US tries to play down naval confrontation with China
By Arshad Mohammed Arshad Mohammed 1 hr 50 mins ago

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States sought on Wednesday to play down a confrontation between Chinese and U.S. naval vessels as the two sides held high-level talks on reviving growth and reining in North Korea's nuclear program.

Tensions between the two countries rose over a weekend incident in the South China Sea in which five Chinese ships jostled with a U.S. Navy survey vessel off China's southern Hainan island, site of a major submarine base and other naval installations.

The United States has said its ship, the Impeccable, was in international waters. Beijing, however, has said the U.S. ship was in the wrong and Chinese navy officers have argued that it had violated their country's sovereignty.

There are no signs, however, that the disagreement will derail broader political and economic negotiations as the two countries seek to grapple with the global financial crisis, security challenges like North Korea and climate change.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she raised the issue with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, who was to see U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner later in the day and, in a rare gesture, to meet President Barack Obama on Thursday.
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