WASHINGTON, Aug. 14, 2017 -- Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, arrived in Beijing today, the chairman's office said in a statement. This is Dunford's first visit to China as the chairman.

The chairman's trip is in support of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s diplomatic and economic campaign to deter North Korea, defense officials said. Success in that campaign would be a North Korean commitment to denuclearization and a halt of missile tests, they added.

In Beijing, Dunford said his primary objective will be to "continue to develop our military-to-military relationships, to mitigate the risk of miscalculation in the region and to have cooperation where those opportunities exist.”

The chairman will be hosted by his Chinese counterpart, Gen. Fang Fenghui, chief of the Joint Staff Department. "The visit underscores U.S. interest in further developing military-to-military relationships between the United States and China," the statement said.