Chinese FM Yang in Washington amid naval standoff

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi meets US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday amid a tense US-China naval standoff in the South China sea. Rifts also emerged between the two countries over Tibet. The United States accused China on Tuesday of adopting a more aggressive military stance in the South China Sea as a naval confrontation caused anger in Beijing and raised tension before a U.S. visit by China's foreign minister. The incident involving five Chinese ships and a U.S. Navy survey vessel threatened to further complicate ties between the two powers as they wrestle with a joint response to the global economic crisis and prepare for a G20 summit in London next month. National Intelligence Director DennisBlair told the U.S. Congress the Chinese have become more assertive in staking claims to international waters around economic zones and were "more military,aggressive, forward-looking than we saw a couple years before" in Southeast Asia and the South China Sea. Blair said it was unclear whether Beijing would use its growing military power "for good or pushing people around." The United States accused China of harassing the U.S. ship, the USNS Impeccable, in international waters off China's Hainan island, site of a major submarine base and other naval installations. The U.S. Embassy in Beijing filed a protest with China. China countered that the United States had distorted the truth and violated international and Chinese laws.