BEIJING, June 27 (Reuters) - China is willing to work with Vietnam to strengthen high-level communication and cooperation between their militaries, Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu said on Tuesday as he met his Vietnamese counterpart.
Li told Phan that relations between their militaries had developed well, adding that China's military was willing to push relations to a new level.
The U.S. navy visit comes amid tension between China and the United States in the South China Sea, most of which China claims, as the two powers jostle for influence in the energy-rich region.
Li, appointed defence minister in March, is under U.S. sanctions over his role in a 2017 weapons purchase from Russia's largest arms exporter.
As tensions simmer in the South China Sea, where several countries have overlapping territorial claims and also hold military exercises in its waters, any thaw in Sino-U.S. military relations is being closely watched.
Persons:
Li Shangfu, Li, Phan Van Giang, Phan, Ronald Reagan, Lloyd Austin, Austin, Nancy Pelosi, Bernard Orr, Kim Coghill, Robert Birsel
Organizations:
Chinese Defence, U.S, aircraft, U.S . Defence, Beijing, Thomson
Locations:
BEIJING, China, Vietnam, Beijing, Asia, Pacific, Danang, U.S, United States, South China, Singapore, Taiwan