Chinese military chief leaves Beijing for central Asia trip

BEIJING, May 30 (Xinhua) -- Chen Bingde, chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), left Beijing Wednesday to pay official goodwill visits to Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan, according to a Ministry of Defense press release.

During his stay in Tajikistan, Chen will attend a meeting of military chiefs from Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states and participate in a strategic consultation on the "Peace Mission 2012" drill, a joint anti-terrorism military exercise launched under the SCO framework.

Sourced: Xinhuanet