BEIJING, May 30 (Xinhua) -- China and India have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on their defense cooperation during Indian Defense Minister Pranab Mukherjee's visit to China.

    The Chinese side holds that the signing of the MOU will be beneficial to the growth of Sino-Indian military relations and "will not target any third country," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao at a news conference here Tuesday.

    Mukherjee arrived in Beijing Sunday afternoon for his six-day visit to China, which will also take him to northwestern Gansu Province and Shanghai municipality, the country's economic hub in east China.

    This is Mukherjee's first trip to China since the assumption of his post in 2004.

    Chinese Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan and Mukherjee held talks on Monday, pledging to deepen military exchanges between the armed forces of the two countries.

    China has pledged to step up strategic and cooperative relations with India in 2006, a year of friendship between China and India, said its Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing during a meeting with Mukherjee on Monday. Enditem