US defence secretary to visit Japan, China and NZ

US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta will leave for Japan, the first leg of a tour which includes also China and New Zealand, the Pentagon Press Secretary George Little announced. Panetta "looks forward to discussing a wide range of issues with his Japanese counterpart, including Japanese concerns over safety of the Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft the United States is deploying to Japan," Little said. Regarding the visit to China, the Pentagon Spokesman said that it "provides an opportunity to deepen military-to-military engagements," adding that the two nations "continue to work together to establish healthy, stable reliable and continuous military-to-military ties.” The US Defence Secretary's visit to New Zealand will be the first of its kind in more than 30 years The trip follows the signing in June of the Washington Declaration by the secretary and Dr. Jonathan Coleman, New Zealand’s defense minister, Little added.