Pakistan, China to enhance military cooperation

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and China have inked an agreement for further strengthening defence production, staging joint military exercises and training military officers.

Quoting sources, Online news agency reported Sunday the agreement was signed during the visit here of Chinese Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Ma Xiaotian.

Under the agreement, Pakistan and China have agreed that both countries would work jointly for strategic stability in the region and to enhance cooperation between institutions of defence production, the sources said.

It was also agreed that both countries would also ensure the implementation of memorandums of understanding signed in the past on the supply of latest planes and ships and any obstacles in the way would be removed through talks.

The sources further said that both countries agreed on the training of soldiers and frequent visits of senior military officers and contacts between them, adding that the agreement will have far-reaching impact on the relations between the two countries.

Pakistan-China relations began in 1950 when this country was among the first to break ties with Taiwan and recognise the People’s Republic of China.

Following the Sino-Indian hostilities of 1962, Pakistan’s relations with China became stronger. Since then, the two countries have regularly exchanged high-level visits, resulting in a variety of agreements.

The relationship has been described by Chinese President Hu Jintao as “higher than the mountains and deeper than the oceans”.

Of late, military cooperation has deepened with joint projects producing armaments ranging from fighter jets to guided missile frigates.