BEIJING, Oct 31: The Chinese foreign ministry said on Friday that President Pervez Musharraf’s visit to China would give a new direction to bilateral relations.

“We hope the current regional and international issues, including war against terrorism, will come under discussion during the talks to be held in Beijing on Monday between President Musharraf and Chinese President Hu Jintao,” said Liu Jian, a senior official of the Chinese ministry of foreign affairs.

Talking to APP, he said: “We hope the visit by President Musharraf would be successful in consolidating bilateral ties, especially in the economic sector.”

“We are also looking forward to promote their understanding on regional and international issues,” he said, adding “China highly appreciates Pakistan’s efforts and its role at international level for combating terrorism.”

About the Kashmir issue, Mr Liu said: “We will continue to encourage and push both India and Pakistan to resolve this problem through dialogue and other peaceful means.”—APP