Leaders resume military dialogue

BEIJING - China and India are due to start their fourth Annual Defense Dialogue in New Delhi on Thursday, as military leaders from the world's two most populous nations resume their highest-level and most intensive exchanges yet after a freeze of nearly two years.

During the two-day talks, Ma Xiaotian, deputy chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army, and Indian Defense Secretary Shashikant Sharma are expected to discuss regional security, military exchanges and confidence-building measures on the border between the two nations.

Earlier reports from New Delhi indicated that discussions on a joint military exercise next year would also be part of the talks.