Military observers from 15 countries Monday watched live
maneuvers by Chinese military forces for the first time.
At a military practice base in north China's Inner
Mongolia Autonomous Region, 27 military observers from the
United States, Britain, France, Russia, Germany, Canada, Thailand
and other countries watched a modern fierce battle drill
participated in by 5,000 Chinese soldiers from various branches of
the armed forces.
After the six-hour practice, organized by China's Beijing
Military Command, Steven Krstic from Britain said it was the first
time for him to see so much Chinese military equipment as well as
so many different kinds of Chinese armaments.
These war games were very successful, and it was good for China
to invite foreigners to observe them, said Ahmet Celik from
Turkey.
The foreign military observers were the first overseas guests to
be invited to China's largest tactical drill base.
The purpose of inviting foreign observers to watch Chinese
military maneuvers is to adapt to the world new military
renovation, and to strengthen exchanges between the People's
Liberation Army (PLA) with foreign armed forces, sources with
China's Ministry of National Defense said.
On Aug. 6, China and the four other Shanghai Cooperation
Organization members -- Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and
Tajikistan -- launched their first joint anti-terror military
exercises in Kazakhstan and China.
The PLA has established military ties with the armed forces of
over 140 countries, and in the past 20 years more than 2,500
foreign military delegations have visited China, according to the
Ministry of National Defense.
(Xinhua News Agency August 26, 2003)