Pentagon chief to visit Australia, Thailand and Cambodia
US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta will travel to Australia, Thailand and Cambodia next week as part of America's strategic tilt to the Asia-Pacific, even as crises in the Middle East demand the Pentagon's attention and resources. In a week-long trip starting Sunday, Panetta will head to Perth, for an annual US-Australia meeting of ministers that will include Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the US military's top officer, General Martin Dempsey, and the head of Pacific Command, Admiral Samuel Locklear, officials said Thursday. ... After Australia, Panetta will fly to Thailand, the first visit by a Pentagon chief since 2008, before heading to Cambodia where he will join 10 counterparts at a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). ...
