US gets new military commander in Asia-Pacific

The commander of NATO-led operations that helped Libyan rebels overthrow Moammar Gadhafi took over Friday as the top U.S. military commander in Asia and the Pacific.Adm. Samuel Locklears new role with the U.S. Pacific Command comes as the U.S. places more emphasis on its military presence in the region in response to the areas growing economic importance and Chinas rise as a military power.The Pacific Command is responsible for an area stretching from the U.S. West Coast to India. It oversees some 325,000 military and civilian personnel about one-fifth of the militarys payroll.Americas future depends on the peace and prosperity of Asia and the Pacific, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told the crowd at Fridays ceremony, at which Locklear assumed command from Adm. Robert Willard.When I look across the world to the threats and challenges that we face as a nation from terrorism, natural disasters, proliferation of weapons of nuclear destruction, to rogue nations and the rising powers of the Pacific this region has most of those threats here, Panetta said.Panetta said the position required not just a great warrior but also a great diplomat.Locklear last month told the Senate Armed Services Committee at his confirmation hearing that Chinas military buildup is a source of strategic uncertainty. He described the current military relationship as cooperative but competitive.It would be my plan to, in every way possible, improve our military-to-military relationship, with the recognition that there are things we wont agree on, that greater transparency is for the good of all of us to avoid miscalculation, Locklear told the committee.Willard, the outgoing commander, has said that U.S.-China military ties have been maintained at a senior level but China is reluctant to have tactical and operational ties with the U.S.In the past, Beijing has stymied bilateral military exchanges in response to U.S. arms sales to the self-governing island of Taiwan, which China considers a renegade province.Locklear most recently commanded the U.S. Navy in Europe and Africa.