China would strive for a peaceful international environment to develop, and try to better contribute to world peace, a senior Chinese military official said in Singapore on Saturday.

Zhang Qinsheng, Deputy Chief of General Staff of People's Liberation Army of China, made the remarks while speaking at the plenary session of an annual Asia Security Summit, also known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, after the name of the Singapore hotel at which the event takes place.

China tries to be an active contributor to Asia-Pacific security and stability, he said.

He noted that the fundamentals of the Chinese Asia-Pacific security policy are maintaining peace and security, facilitating dialogue and cooperation, as well as advocating harmony and common prosperity.

"In my view, a harmonious Asia-Pacific is a region in which countries live side by side peacefully, on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual confidence," he said, adding that " They promote economic growth and social progress in a coordinated manner, make efforts to narrow the North-South gap to achieve common prosperity.

"They deepen pragmatic cooperation to jointly cope with the new threat and challenges, and for common security; they embrace openness and inclusiveness, respect diversity, facilitate dialogue between cultures and religious beliefs, and exchange between different social systems and development modes."

He added that "As a result, the region is increasingly colorful and dynamic, and advances towards common development."

To that end, he proposed further mutual confidence on the strategic level, adhering to open multilateralism and further strengthening security cooperation.

In addition, he said China believes that Asia-Pacific is one of the most dynamic regions in the world and regional cooperation continues to deepen.

In the meantime, however, he said that there are many complex elements which still impact Asia-Pacific security, including disputes over territorial and maritime rights and interests, terrorism, as well as the hot-spot issues.

The three-day Shangri-La Dialogue, organized by the London- based International Institute for Strategic Studies, opened on Friday. It gathered defense ministers and top officials from 26 countries and regions in the Asia-Pacific region and Europe to address major regional security issues and defense cooperation.

Source: Xinhua