China ‘helping Afghanistan’ with defense, counter-terrorism – Beijing

China’s Defense Ministry said on Thursday that it was supporting defense and counter-terrorism efforts in Afghanistan. On Wednesday, Beijing denied a plan to build a base in Afghanistan and to send Chinese forces to the war-torn country. Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian said China and Afghanistan had “normal military and security cooperation.” Beijing and the international community “are all supporting Afghanistan to strengthen its defense and counter-terrorism building efforts,” Wu told reporters. “China is willing to continue working hard with Afghanistan to jointly protect both countries and regional security and stability,” Reuters quoted Wu as saying.