ChineseVP urges mutual trust between China-U.S. armed forces

"I hope the two countries' defense departments and armed forces will remove obstacles and promote their ties with mutual respect and mutually beneficial cooperation," Vice President Xi Jinping told Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. China and the United States announced the details of military exchanges to be conducted in the near future after a meeting between high-level military officials of both nations. The two sides reaffirmed that a sound, stable and reliable military relationship is an important component of China-U.S. relations, according to the release. They pledged to formulate a principle conducive to the development of bilateral military relations and take other actions to promote the progress of the relations, the release said.