China's military secrecy justifies surveillance flights: U.S. official

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By David Brunnstrom WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is justified in carrying out surveillance flights in East Asia, in spite of Chinese objections, given a lack of transparency in China's military buildup, a senior U.S. Beijing called last month for the United States to cut back, or even stop, close surveillance by patrol aircraft if it seriously sought to repair damaged bilateral ties. Asked about the Chinese call to scale back such flights, Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel, the senior U.S. "We have the right to conduct legitimate missions outside of China’s territorial space and there is a persuasive rational for doing so," he told Reuters.

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