U.S. Aircraft Carrier Denied Access To Hong Kong

"At present, it appears the USS Kitty Hawk strike group will not be making a port call in Hong Kong as previously planned as a result of a last minute denial by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs," State Department spokeswoman Nicole Thompson said. The United States was pressing China for an explanation and to reconsider its decision, she added. There are several possible sources of discontent that may have prompted the decision -- including U.S. plans to sell Taiwan a $940 million upgrade to its missile system and a meeting last month between President George W Bush and the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan Buddhist leader who Beijing considers a traitor. The Foreign Ministry in Beijing declined to make an immediate comment. Last year, a Chinese submarine surfaced uncomfortably close to the Kitty Hawk near the Japanese island of Okinawa, an incident that highlighted the potential for friction between the two powers. ... http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN2122835820071122

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