The defence ministers of China and Mozambique have called for closer ties between their respective armed forces, CGTN says.

Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe told Mozambican Defence Minister Cristóvão Artur Chume when they met online on Tuesday that China would like to see communication between the their armed forces at a high level, and joint efforts to counter the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese state-run television broadcaster reported the next day.

Mozambique would like to see greater Sino-Mozambican trust, and enduring military ties with China, CGTN quotes Mr Chume as saying.

Separately, the Chinese government-run news agency, Xinhua, reports that Mr Chume praised the achievements of China in the field of economic and social development, and its success in holding in Beijing this year the Winter Olympic Games and the Paralympic Winter Games.