BANDUNG, Indonesia - The first joint training exercise between Chinese and Indonesian special forces in history ended on Friday.

The exercise, which had the code name "Sharp Knife 2011", began on May 4 and was conducted between special forces from China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) and Indonesia's National Armed Forces.

Hou Shusen, deputy chief of staff of the PLA, said the joint training and the relationship between the two countries was quite significant, even though it lasted only for a short time and was fairly small in size.

During a ceremony held to mark the end of the exercise, Hou said China enjoys similar military relationships with other countries and that the relationships deepen mutual trust.

"This has expanded our military to military cooperation and explored a new channel and area for exchange," Hou said. "This is meaningful for the modernization of both armies. We are willing to carry on such exchanges in the future."

Hou said the training greatly improved the combat capabilities of both groups of special forces, and that the tactics that they learned can be applied in the future in actual combat against terrorism.

"China is a victim of terrorism and the Chinese government places a great priority on international cooperation against terrorism," Hou said.

Lieutenant General Budiman, deputy chief of staff of Indonesia's National Armed Forces, said the first session of joint training was a "correct choice" for the two countries and armies.

"Although the two armies have different traditions, this training is of great importance in boosting cooperation on security, and helping to bolster mutual respect and understanding," Budiman said.

Fifty commanders and soldiers from the PLA took part in the three phases of the training, which dealt with exchange and exhibition, composite formation training and comprehensive exercises.

The exercise is expected to further consolidate the friendship between the two countries. It is also aimed at improving mutual understanding and trust and promoting exchanges and cooperation between the two armies.

The main portion of the training concerned counter-terrorist missions aimed at rescuing hostages. For this, Chinese special forces worked with their Indonesian counterparts to simulate how they would respond to an emergency in which a terrorist organization had taken hostages.

Lieutenant Colonel Wu Yunzhostaff officer of the Ministry of National Defense, said the training helped to improve the Chinese special forces' ability to fight terrorists.

"Counter-terrorist missions to rescue hostages are often carried out by armed police," he said. "What we've learnt during these 15 days, especially the tactics, can be applied in training and actual combat in the future."

Indonesia lies in parts of both the Pacific and Indian oceans and helps to form the Strait of Malacca, a seaway essential to international shipping in the South China Sea. It is also the country with the largest population of Muslims and overseas Chinese.

Many of China's supplies, including energy imports, are transported through the Strait of Malacca, said Su Hao, head of the Strategy and Conflict Management Research Center at China Foreign Affairs University. He said China wants to cooperate more with other countries to ensure security in the South China Sea and security in the strait.

Indonesia meanwhile holds the presidency of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and will be the site of an ASEAN forum meeting this year. Su said Indonesia hopes to play an active and constructive role in the region to promote cooperation between China and ASEAN.

China has rarely taken part in joint training with Southeast Asian countries, and the recent exercises with Indonesia were the first instance of such training conducted between the two countries. Su said China participated in the ASEAN Regional Forum Disaster Relief Exercise organized by Indonesia and Japan, which took place in North Sulawesi, Indonesia, in March this year. Su said the training was very important.

"Both these moves will do much to improve China's image among Southeast Asian countries", Su said.

China Daily

(China Daily 06/18/2011 page7)