China and the United States agreed to open a defence hotline

China and the United States agreed to open a defence "hotline," deepen dialogue on nuclear issues, and increase military exchanges, but US concerns over the rapid Chinese military build-up remain. In talks with Defence Minister Cao Gangchuan to kick off his two-day China trip, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates also sought to persuade Beijing to back tougher economic sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme.

The underlying US aim in seeking such a dialogue is to avoid a miscalculation between the two nuclear powers. China has stated that its annual military budget rose 17.8 percent this year to 45 billion dollars. But the Pentagon believes China's military spending is as high as 125 billion dollars a year.