China, Tajikistan pledge further military cooperation

A visiting senior Chinese military official said Wednesday China was ready to work with Tajikistan to push the practical exchange and cooperation between the two armed forces to a new high.

Chen Bingde, chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), made the remarks during a meeting with Tajikistan Defense Minister Sherali Khayrulloyev.

Chen said that, with the development of China-Tajikistan relations, military-to-military ties between the two nations had also witnessed continuous progress. The armed forces of the two countries had conducted smooth cooperation in various fields, he said.

Under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), in particular, the two militaries had conducted fruitful defense and security cooperation, and had played an important role in safeguarding the fundamental interests of the countries and peoples in the region and maintaining world peace and stability.

"The Chinese side is ready to make joint efforts with Tajikistan to elevate the practical exchange and cooperation between the two armed forces in various fields to a new level," Chen said.

Khayrulloyev said the two militaries, which had close relations and were deepening cooperation in all fields, had good prospects for future development.

Tajikistan was honored to host the "Peace Mission 2012" joint anti-terrorism military exercise, and believed, with the significant support and assitance from China and other SCO member countries, the drills would be a great success, he said.

Chen also held talks Wednesday with Ramil Nadyrov, chief of the General Staff of Tajikistan's armed forces.

During their talks, Chen said that, as an important part of bilateral relations, military ties between China and Tajikistan had maintained a good momentum of development. Their cooperation has growd in both breadth and depth, he said.

The Chinese side supported Tajikistan's holding of the "Peace Mission 2012" drills, and was ready to coordinate closely with Tajikistan and other countries to ensure the success of the exercise, Chen said.

Nadyrov thanked China for its support for the drills and said Tajikistan's military would work with China to push forward the friendly military ties between the two countries.