Closer military link seen with Russia

MOSCOW－Russian President Vladimir Putin met with a top Chinese military official in Moscow on Thursday on improving military cooperation between the two countries.

Military cooperation plays an important role in Russia-China relations and the two countries should continue to strengthen their partnership in joint military drills, army games and personnel training, Putin said.

He made the remark at a meeting with Zhang Youxia, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission.

Putin said Russia prioritizes relations with China in its foreign policy and praised the high-level strategic coordination between them.

He said Russia and China should further improve communication and coordination to maintain regional and global peace and stability as they hold the same or similar positions on many issues.

Zhang said the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination is ascending to higher levels thanks to efforts made by the two presidents.

Ties between the two militaries have been expanding and deepening with effective practical cooperation, Zhang said.

He said that China is ready to work with Russia to implement the consensuses between the two presidents, support each other, and jointly safeguard the security interests of both countries and help maintain world peace and stability.

A series of joint activities have been planned for Chinese and Russian military units before the end of this year, according to China's Defense Ministry.

They include ongoing anti-terrorism drills in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region that will last until Wednesday, and the second joint computer-assisted anti-missile drill from Monday to Saturday in Beijing.

Some Chinese pilots are also in Russia learning to fly the Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jet－Russia's most advanced fighter in use, China's Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian said on Nov 30.

Xinhua-China Daily