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By Wang Zhaokun A senior Pakistani defense official Tuesday hailed the strategic partnership between Beijing and Islamabad as "a source of comfort and stability," saying he believes that the two countries' military relationship will continue to flourish in the future to promote regional peace and stability. "If there are two countries about which you can give an example of friendship in the world, the best would be the Pakistan-China friendship," General Khalid Shameem Wynne, chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), said at a press conference in Beijing. Wynne made the trip to China to attend the eighth round of defense and security talks between China and Pakistan, in which the two sides are expected to discuss how to strengthen military cooperation and about other regional issues. Wynne said that Pakistan and China would hold two joint military exercises, one army drill and one air force drill, this year, and that the two countries would also participate in a multinational naval drill in March. Speaking on China-Pakistan defense cooperation, Wynne stressed that the ties, which are "going forward every year," are based upon the principle that the strategic relationship between the two countries determines that China has a role to play in maintaining regional peace and stability. "That's why we can move forward on joint efforts on the development of sophisticated weapon systems, including aircraft and tanks, and in the area of anti-terrorism," he said. Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani recently said China has a "greater responsibility" to play a balancing role to bring about stability in South Asia, India's PTI news agency reported. Indirectly referring to New Delhi's civil nuclear accord with Washington, Gilani expressed concern about "some of the agreements made with the US," as he feared they might bring disparity and instability in South Asia. Wynne met Tuesday with Chen Qiufa, the administrator of China's State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, according to the Pakistani embassy in Beijing. The two officials discussed the ongoing and upcoming defense cooperation projects. |
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