China and Australia agreed Monday to expand military cooperation.

"China will spare no effort to support the implementation of any relevant consensus between the Chinese and Australian armed forces and will continue expanding communication, deepen practical cooperation and raise bilateral military ties to a new level," said Chen Bingde, Chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army, in a meeting Beijing with Australian Chief of the Army, Ken Gillespie.

Chen also said that further development of China-Australia relations was in the interest of both nations and would be favorable for the peace, stability and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region and the world.

Gillespie agreed, saying that Australia-China relations had developed a lot in the past few years and bilateral military ties had moved forward. He said Australia was willing work with China to strengthen cooperation in fighting terrorism, disaster relief and peace-keeping.

(Xinhua News Agency March 16, 2009)