PRESIDENT John Magufuli has assured Chinese President Xi Jinping of continued cooperation in strengthening capacity of the armies of the two countries and other social development matters.
Dr Magufuli pledged the above yesterday
in talks with the Vice-Chairman of the Central Military Commission of
the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), General Fan Changlong, at
the State House in Dar es Salaam.
The president asked Gen Fan to convey
his appreciation and Tanzania’s assurance in continued military
cooperation to President XI, who is Commander- in-Chief of the PLA.
A statement issued yesterday by the
Directorate of Presidential Communications, signed by its director, Mr
Gerson Msigwa, said the two leaders discussed a range of issues basing
on the long-standing military cooperation between the two countries.
President Magufuli told Gen Fan that
Tanzania valued such cooperation, which has largely contributed to
efforts to strengthen the Tanzania People’s Defence Forces (TPDF) to
turn it into a modern, wellequipped army. “I am pleased with your visit
to our country.
The visit will further cement the
existing relations and cooperation between our countries, which were
pioneered by our founding fathers, the late Mwalimu Julius Kambarage
Nyerere of Tanzania and the late Chairman Mao Tse-tung of China,” Dr
Magufuli said.
“Please tell President Xi that apart
from our military cooperation, we would like to see China in the
frontline in supporting us in our development efforts by setting up
industries and implementing other projects such as construction of the
Central Railway Line at standard gauge quality,” he added.
Gen Fan praised President Magufuli for
his leadership and promised that China would continue strengthening
cooperation with Tanzania in the area of security by building the
capacity of the TPDF. The PLA is the world’s largest military force,
with the strength of approximately 2,285,000 personnel.
According to the Stockholm International
Peace Research Institute’s data, China became the world’s third largest
exporter of major arms between 2010 and 2014, an increase of 143 per
cent from the period 2005– 2009.
China’s share of global arms exports
hence increased from 3 to 5 per cent. It exported major arms to 18
African states, underlining China’s increasing global presence as an
arms supplier between 2010 and 2014.
Following rapid advances in its arms
industry, China has become less dependent on arms imports, which
decreased by 42 per cent from 2005 to 2009 and from 2010 to 2014.
Present at the talks were the Minister
for Defence and National Service, Dr Hussein Mwinyi, the Minister for
Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, Dr Augustine Mahiga, the
Chief of Defence Forces, General Davis Mwamunyange, and other commanders
of the armies of the two nations
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