PLA chief hopes China, US will forge 'new type of military relationship'

General Fang Fenghui, People's Liberation Army chief of general staff, hopes China and the United States can forge a "new type of military relationship" in talks with visiting chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey.

Fang called their talks in Beijing yesterday - the first high-level meeting between military chiefs of the world's two biggest economies since leadership reshuffles in both countries - "an important event in the bilateral military exchange programme".

At a joint news conference, Dempsey defended the re-orientation of American foreign policy towards Asia, after Beijing last week criticised Washington for ramping up its military presence in the region. "We seek to be a stabilising influence in the region," he said. "In fact, we believe it would be our absence that would be destabilising in the region, not our presence."

Fang suggested that the two nations work together to improve communication and co-ordination to deal with any possible crisis in the region. "[The interaction] not only concerns the relations between the two armies, but also affects the peace and stability of the Asia-Pacific region," he said. "We share the responsibility of jointly safeguarding [it]."

Beijing and Washington have in recent months traded accusations of massive cyber-intrusions. When asked whether China was willing to delegate staff to set rules for global cybersecurity, Fang said that the internet, "if it is not managed well, may bring damaging consequences".

"If security cannot be guaranteed, it is not an exaggeration to say that the consequences could be as serious as a nuclear bomb," he said.