China and Vietnam held the first round of consultation on defensive security in Beijing Monday.

Xiong Guangkai, deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Duc Soat attended the closed-door talks held in the headquarters of the Defense Ministry.

A short news release issued by the ministry said the two sides exchanged views in an in-depth way on "international and regional security," "defense policy and army building" and "the relationship between the two nations and the two armed forces."

But it does not reveal any more details.

After the consultation, Nguyen Duc Soat met with Xu Caihou, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, and Liang Guanglie, the PLA's chief of the General Staff.

Xu said China and Vietnam have enjoyed a traditional friendship and that strengthening cooperation is in the fundamental interests of the two nations. Under a policy of "looking to the future, boosting good neighborly friendship and exploring the all-around collaboration," the Sino-Vietnamese relationship has developed smoothly in recent years while political trust has been cemented, economic cooperation fruitful and military exchange strengthened, he said.

"The PLA is willing to step up friendly cooperation with Vietnam's People's Army," Xu said, adding this would boost the relationship between the two countries.

Nguyen Duc Soat said Vietnam hopes to reinforce the cooperation between the two armed forces in every field.

China and Vietnam established diplomatic relations in 1950.

Trade between the two countries reached 5 billion US dollars in 2004. Leaders agreed during Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai's visit to China in May 2004 to double that amount by 2010.