China praises India's Arjun main battle tank

In a sign of improved military relations, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) opened the doors of the key military institute – Academy of Armoured Forces Engineering – which trains over 6,000 cadets per year to the a team of visiting Indian journalists.

Asked for his impressions of the Arjun battle tank developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation, Senior Colonel Liu Degang, deputy commander of the Academy which keeps a close watch on the military hardware of India, said it is "very good" and suits Indian conditions.

The Arjun is a third generation main battle tank developed by DRDO for the Indian Army. It is powered by a single MTU multi-fuel diesel engine and can achieve a maximum speed of 67 km/h and a cross-country speed of 40 km/h.

Liu attributed the rare interaction with the Indian media to a new found confidence in line with China's opening politically and militarily to the outside world.

The academy specialises in training at various levels of <g data-gr-id="23">caders</g> from diploma to masters and even doctorate studies in tanks and armoured vehicles.

Liu said his academy has hosted 300 delegations from about 70 countries and trained 2,700 army personnel from 40 countries and sent over 500 personnel to conduct international academic exchanges or as UN military observers.

Housed in 453 hectares, the sprawling academy, was built in 1.20 lakh metres of <g data-gr-id="25">built up</g> area. It is one of PLA's 16 diploma granting institutions fostering officers for its armoured mechanised forces.

Besides training cadets for PLA, it also provides training for overseas cadets <g data-gr-id="24">specially</g> for various South Asian countries, including Pakistan.