— Photo: PTI

MATURING TIES: Chief of the Army Staff General J.J. Singh with his Chinese counterpart General Liang Guanglie at a ceremonial welcome at the Ministry of Defence in Beijing on Monday.

Beijing: The Chief of the Army Staff General J.J. Singh had his first official round of meetings in the Chinese capital on Monday. He is on a five-day trip to China, the first such visit by the Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee of the Indian Armed Forces.

Gen. Singh will visit military units and institutions in Wuhan, Hangzhoiu and Shanghai. During his meetings with senior People's Liberation Army officials, he is expected to discuss the modalities of future joint military exercises .

Gen. Singh was welcomed by his Chinese counterpart General Liang Guanglie at the headquarters of the Central Military Commission. "Welcome to China," Gen. Liang told Gen. Singh and described him as "a friend". Gen. Liang noted that the exchanges and cooperation between the defence forces of the two nations had matured.

His visit comes a year after the Defence Ministries of India and China signed a landmark memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation. The MoU called for institutionalisation of frequent exchanges between the leaders of the Defence ministries and the armed forces, in addition to developing an annual calendar for joint military exercises and training programmes.

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