U.S. and Chinese military commanders hold rare phone call to avoid miscalculation
CBSN
The head of all U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific spoke to a Chinese counterpart for the first time in years, according to a statement from the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.
The video call between the head of U.S. Indo-Pacific command Admiral Samuel Paparo and Gen. Wu Yanan, the commander of the People's Liberation Army's Southern Theater Command, on Monday was the first call between leaders in that position for several years.
Paparo, according to the readout, spoke of how the importance of communication "between senior leaders serve to clarify intent and reduce the risk of misperception or miscalculation."
An American Airlines jet with 60 passengers and four crew members aboard collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday night while coming in for a landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington. The Black Hawk helicopter was carrying a crew of three. Officials said early Thursday that everyone on board both aircraft is believed dead, which would make it the deadliest U.S. air crash in nearly a quarter century.