China and Japan on Friday agreed to cooperate and share information during their joint anti-piracy campaign in the Horn of Africa, in a move that analysts view as a breakthrough for Sino-Japanese military ties.

Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie and his Japanese counterpart Yasukazu Hamada also achieved a consensus on expanding bilateral military cooperation on the first day of Hamada's visit to Beijing.

The visit aims to ease tensions over the territorial disputes on the Diaoyu Islands and expand cooperation in solving regional problems, analysts said.

The defense ministers exchanged views on how both countries can enhance their joint anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia after Tokyo last week dispatched two destroyers to protect Japanese cargo ships in the area.

The Japanese fleet will arrive in Somali waters by the end of this month, joining China and about 20 other countries fighting piracy.

"This should be the first time for Chinese and Japanese warships to cooperate since 1949 (founding of the People's Republic of China)," said Senior Colonel Li Jie, a researcher at the Chinese Navy's Military Academy.

Zhu Feng, a professor at Peking University, said it was a breakthrough for both countries to reach such an agreement on high-level cooperation in a short period of time.

"It is not only an opportunity for military exchanges, but also for expanding new areas of cooperation," he told China Daily.

Not only could the two naval fleets exchange information on piracy, but also combat it if necessary, said Li, adding that the cooperation would be unprecedented for both navies.

Before meeting Liang, Hamada also met China's top legislator Wu Bangguo.

Both officials stressed the importance of putting aside differences and developing relations conforming to mutual interests. China had earlier lodged harsh protests with Tokyo after Taro Aso, ahead of a recent visit to China, remarked last month that the Diaoyu Islands were part of Japanese territory and hence covered by the US-Japan security treaty.

Zhu said the statement was a signal that both countries were ready to ease tensions over their recent territorial dispute over the Diaoyu Islands and move on with mutual missions.

In other areas, the two defense ministers on Friday also took the opportunity to urge "restraint" on the Korean peninsula before a planned rocket launch by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) between April 4 and 8.

Washington and Seoul say Pyongyang's real aim is to test a long-range Taepodong-2 missile, the DPRK's first weapon with the theoretical ability to reach Alaska. Japan has warned it would shoot down any missile headed for its territory, while Pyongyang said it would regard any interception as an act of war.

Hamada will visit the Beijing military region on Saturday.

(China Daily March 21, 2009)