Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will pay a visit to Beijing in October, Adm. William Fallon, head of US Pacific Command told reporters Wednesday. The Pentagon could soon invite Chinese military experts to observe exercises on the Korean Peninsula, Fallon added. Rumsfeld would be making his first trip to China, which he has accused of not being forthcoming on the scope of its broad military buildup.
The Air Force is planning to spend $2.19 billion over the next five years to acquire new C-37 jets for transporting military and civilian leaders. That’s on top of another $1.17 billion in projected funding for the VC-25B “Air Force One” replacement.