China is permitting a search by the United States for the remains of two pilots linked to the Cold War era, Chinese Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

"The Chinese side has agreed that the US side may, in the near future, send personnel to China to inspect the area where US military personnel presumably went missing during the Cold War period," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao.

It is reported that two US pilots went missing over Northeast China during a spying mission about 50 years ago.

The Pentagon is preparing to send a search team to Northeast China in hopes of recovering the remains of the two American pilots who are believed to have been buried 50 years ago where their unmarked plane crashed during a failed spy mission for the CIA, according to reports from Associated Press.

The eight-member search team from the Army's Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii is scheduled to leave on July 15 and investigate the crash site near the town of Antu in China's Jilin Province, the press said.

China has for many years cooperated with the United States in searches for missing US soldiers in the spirit of humanity and to further promote friendly relations between the two countries, Liu said.

The Chinese Government has cooperated with the United States on several projects to recover the remains of World War II-era military personnel lost in China. In 1999, a US-China team recovered the remains of two US airmen whose B-24 bomber crashed into a mountain in today's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in 1944 while returning from a mission.

China to continue supporting African Union

China will continue to support and strengthen cooperation with the African Union (AU), with a view to establish a new partnership of long-term stability, equality and mutual benefit with African countries.

The Foreign Ministry spokesman said the 38th summit meeting of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the first summit of the AU had opened in Durban, South Africa, indicating that the AU, as a regional organization, had began to carry out its duties.

Liu said the establishment of the AU, which replaces the OAU, was an important step in uniting and reviving Africa in the face of globalization and would have a far-reaching impact on the development of Africa.

The Chinese government highly values the OAU's great contribution to the independence, peace and development of Africa in the past 40 years, and supports African countries' joint efforts to promote political and economic integration on the continent.

China calls for stability on Korean Peninsula

China hopes the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and the Republic of Korea (ROK) work for stability and the easing of tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Liu said.

Liu Jianchao said China has been dedicated to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and supports the efforts of DPRK and ROK to improve relations so as to eventually achieve peaceful reunification.

China will continue to hold this position and play a constructive role in promoting peace and stability across the Korean Peninsula, he said.

Nepal King's China visit to further ties

The Foreign Ministry spokesman said the state visit to China of Nepalese King Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev will further boost the friendly and good-neighborly ties between the two nations.

He said the friendly and cooperative relations between China and Nepal, two close neighbors, were founded on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.

China and Nepal have maintained diplomatic ties for nearly half a century, always treated each other equally, respected and supported one another, cooperating well in political, economic, trade, cultural, tourism and other realms.

As Nepal's friendly neighbor, China resolutely supports the measures adopted by the Nepalese King and government to keep domestic peace and stability, and sincerely hopes the country could maintain peace, stability and development, the spokesman added.

( July 10, 2002)