Defense Minister Liang Guanglie said in Beijing on Tuesday that the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) attaches great importance to developing friendly relations with the Romanian armed forces.

Liang told his Romanian counterpart Teodor Melescanu in their talks that the PLA is ready to make joint efforts with the Romanian armed forces to promote in-depth development of ties.

Hailing the deepened mutual political trust and fruitful cooperation between the two countries, Liang, also a state councilor, said the army-to-army relationship has maintained a good momentum of development in recent years.

He expressed his gratitude for the Romanian defense ministry's aid to China after the earthquake in Sichuan Province, and briefed the Romanian guests on China's relief efforts in the quake.

Melescanu said China is one of the most important partners of Romania in Asia, hailing the time-tested state-to-state relationship.

He said the Romanian side hopes to strengthen dialogue with China on international security and other areas, as well as in the areas of training and military expertise.

He added that Romania will do all it can to help the Chinese people affected by the quake, while reiterating that Romania will continue to stick to the one-China policy and believes that Tibet is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory.

(Xinhua News Agency June 17, 2008)