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America, China agree to establish military hotline

BEIJING: China and the United States agreed on Monday to open a hotline between the Defence Ministries of the two countries.

Chinese Defence Minister Cao Gangchuan and visiting U.S. Secretary of Defence Robert M. Gates made the announcement at a joint press briefing after holding talks in Beijing on Monday morning.

The Sino-U.S. military hotline is the first of its kind that China has established with another country at the Defence Ministry level.

Discussions on setting up the military hotline have been ongoing since Chinese President Hu Jintao and his U.S. counterpart George W. Bush agreed to advance bilateral military relations during their meeting in April 2006.

The creation of the hotline will help enhance mutual trust between the militaries and promote the development of military-to-military relations between China and the United States, said Tao Wenzhao, a Chinese Academy of Social Sciences researcher. Beside the hotline, the two ministers also agreed to continue to strengthen dialogue and exchange in various levels and cultural exchanges. These included exchanges between military academies and young officers and holding exercises on humanitarian aid and disaster relief.

The Defence Ministries of the two countries will also launch military archives cooperation so as to help find U.S. military personnel missing in action in China before and after the Korean War.

“The military-to-military relations between China and the United States has grown in recent years. China is willing to join hands with the United States, properly handle disputes and friction, and make a sound and stable development of the military relations,” Mr. Cao said during the talks.

Mr. Gates said the two armed forces have maintained an active momentum in the development of military relations and were facing an important opportunity to expand exchanges in various fields. This is Mr. Gates’ first visit to China since he was appointed Secretary of Defence in December. — Xinhua

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