China will welcome the US Assistant Secretary of Defence for International Security Affairs Peter Rodman when he visits Beijing in mid-June, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao at Thursday's routine briefing.
"Chinese military leaders have confirmed that they will hold working talks with Mr. Rodman at that time,'' said Liu, adding that the details were still under discussion.
Rodman will travel to China "to talk about the principles on which we can get our military-to-military relationship on a more solid framework which will be of mutual benefit,'' Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said in remarks released on Sunday by the Pentagon.
Wolfowitz pointed out that Washington hopes to improve regional security cooperation with China, noting that the United States believes China has a "major, important and constructive'' role to play.
In response to reports that the US would hold its 17th sub-critical nuclear test in the near future, Liu said he hoped all the members of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) could abide by its contents.
US President George W. Bush opposes the treaty, which was signed by former President Bill Clinton in 1996. The United States is the power with the largest nuclear arsenal.
The treaty, 40 years in the making, bans nuclear testing and was approved by the United Nations General Assembly in September 1996.
Commenting on Wednesday's suicide bombing in Israel which killed at least 17 people and wounded dozens, Liu said that China opposed and condemned such violence but hoped Israel would exercise restraint and avoid extreme actions.
China calls on both sides to resume peace talks, along with active coordination and mediation efforts by the international community, so as to seek the political settlement of disputes through negotiations, Liu said.
Turning to the tensions along the border of India and Pakistan, Liu said that China sincerely hoped the two sides are able to resolve their disputes through dialogue and negotiations, saying it is in the interests of both nations and other countries in the region.
Liu said that China welcomes any mediation from the third side to help restore peace and stability in the region.
In fact, the international community, including China and Russia, are continuing their efforts to defuse tensions between India and Pakistan.
At the summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) held earlier this week in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Chinese President Jiang Zemin urged parties involved in certain regional conflicts in Asia to seek a peaceful settlement to their disputes and called for solidarity and cooperation among all Asian countries.
China's commitment to continuous efforts to ease tensions in South Asia was echoed by Russia.
"China will continue to work with the international community to help to ease the tensions,'' Liu said.
(China Daily June 7, 2002)
