PLA, Navy to enhance ties

Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Deputy Chief of General Staff General Ma Xiaotian and Navy Commander Vice Admiral Somathilake Dissanayake discussed matters of bilateral relevance during a meeting at the Naval headquarters in Colombo on Tuesday.

General Xiaotian is in Sri Lanka heading a seven-member military delegation. He was accorded a guard of honour and warmly received on arrival.

Director General Operations Rear Admiral Jayanatha Perera, Director Naval Operations Rear Admiral Neil Rosayro and Naval Assistant to the Commander of the Navy Commodore M U K V Bandara also participated in the discussions. Ambassador for the People's Republic of China in Sri Lanka Yang Xiuping was also present on the occasion.

The delegation consisted of Rear Admiral Guan Youfel, Deputy Chief, Foreign Affairs Office (FAO), Ministry of National Defence (MND), Senior Colonel (Air Force), Guo Hongwei, Secretary to General (Air Force), Ma Xiaotian, Senior Colonel Song Yanchao, Deputy Director General, Asian Affairs Bureau, FAO, MND, Colonel Zhao Meng, Staff Officer, FAO, MND, Colonel Liu Bin, Staff Officer, FAO, MND and Captain Jiang Bin, Staff Officer, FAO, MND.