Code-named "Friendship-2006," the eight-day China-Pakistan joint
anti-terrorism exercise began its second stage on Sunday after four
days of weapons and expertise display in the hills of northern
Pakistan's Abbottabad.
Training in anti-terror operations in mountainous terrain,
Sunday's activities included command post exercises, and troop
drills, involving raids, ambushes, cordoning, searching and
annihilation.?
The joint operation began on December 11 and will continue until
December 18, including hundreds of army officers and soldiers from
both sides.?
China and Pakistan are conducting the joint exercise aiming to
enhance communication and understanding between the two armies in
anti-terror operations, to ramp up cooperation in non-traditional
security fields and maintain regional peace and stability.
This land-based joint anti-terrorism drill, the second one
between the two nations since 2004, contributes to the celebration
of the 55th anniversary of the establishment of Sino-Pakistani
diplomatic relations.?
In August 2004, China and Pakistan held the first joint
anti-terrorism military exercise in western China's Xinjiang,
bordering Pakistan and Afghanistan.?
(Xinhua News Agency December 18, 2006)
