An Indian soldier checks the weapon of his Chinese counterpart
during a joint exercise in Kunming, southwest China's Yunnan
Province, December 21.
An Indian soldier paints camouflage colors on his comrade's nose.
Chinese soldiers perform the traditional Chinese martial arts.
"Hand-in-Hand, 2007", the first-ever anti-terror program held
between the two countries, began on Friday with Chinese soldiers
demonstrating their martial arts skills.
They also performed the self-defense technique of "hard qigong"
(a traditional breathing exercise) to loud cheers from their Indian
counterparts.
"It's really impressive," JS Budhwar, an Indian officer, said,
referring to the technique, in which a stack of bricks is put on a
soldier's head and then smashed to pieces with a sledgehammer.
"In our special forces, we conduct similar physical exercises,
but not to this level. It's amazing," Budhwar said.
In return, Indian soldiers demonstrated yoga and performed
Malkhamb, an ancient form of Indian gymnastics, which received
equally warm support from the Chinese soldiers.
"These kind of exchanges help us get to know each other better
and make friends," Gong Kai, a Chinese military officer, said.
"I think we can learn a lot from each other over the coming
days," Gong, who once served in China's UN peacekeeping mission in
Lebanon, said.
The joint training comes at a time of growing exchanges between
the two militaries.
In recent years, China and India have sent officers to attend
courses at each other's military academies and invited each other's
military observers to watch their respective exercises and
maneuvers.
The two countries held their first-ever joint naval exercise in
the East China Sea in November 2003.
"This is another step toward deepening the understanding and
cooperation between the two armies," Brigadier DS Dadwal, the
directing chief of the Indian contingent, said at Friday's opening
ceremony.
"We hope to have more exchanges and cooperation with China in
the future and benefit from this drill," he said.
The drill, which ends on Tuesday, is divided into three
phases.
In the first phase, the two sides will display their weaponry
and demonstrate their combat skills.
In the second, soldiers from both sides will be divided into
mixed formations and drill together.
Finally, the two contingents, each comprising 103 servicemen,
will participate in a simulated anti-terror drill to demonstrate
what they have learned.
"The drill is an opportunity for both sides to learn from each
other the best ways to fight terrorism," Major-General Xiong
Zuoming said.
(Xinhua News Agency December 22, 2007)
