Thursday, December 30 2004 17:44 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Beijing: Observing that Army Chief Gen N C Vij's just-concluded China visit helped promote trust between the militaries of the two countries, Beijing today (Dec 30, 2004) said the development of good-neighbourly and cooperative Sino-India relations is the "demand of times".

During Gen Vij's visit to the Communist nation, the two sides had wide-ranging exchange of views on bilateral relations, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Liu Jianchao told reporters in Beijing.

They noted that they have kept a very good and sound momentum in bilateral relations since last year, Liu said.

"The two sides agreed that the development of a good neighbourly friendship and cooperative relations is a demand of the times and is of great significance to the development of the world," the spokesman said.

He said senior Chinese leaders, including Vice President Zeng Qinghong and Defence Minister General Cao Gangchuan met Vij during his visit to China.

The Chinese side told Vij that the development of the military-to-military relationship is a very important part of the bilateral relationship, he said.

Both sides agreed to promote the relationship on the basis of the mutual benefit and mutual trust, Liu said.

He quoted Vij as saying that India attached importance to its relations with China and in recent years the relationship between the two militaries and the two countries have witnessed smooth development. He also hoped for greater and smoother cooperation, including between the two militaries.