China expects Pakistan ties to stay strong after Musharraf

BEIJING (Reuters) - China said it expects ties with Pakistan to stay close following the departure of President Pervez Musharraf, whom it praised for nurturing relations between the Asian neighbors.

Musharraf quit office on Monday to avoid impeachment charges, nearly nine years he seized power in a coup. Pakistan and China have long been close partners, each seeking to counter India, and Musharraf visited Beijing several times to cement diplomatic and economic ties.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said he expected the two countries to remain close under Musharraf's successors.

"We hope and believe that through the shared efforts of China and Pakistan, the two countries' friendly cooperation will continue progressing," Qin said in a statement on the ministry's website (www.fmprc.gov.cn).

"During his time as president, Musharraf played an important role in developing Sino-Pakistani relations, and the Chinese side has a positive evaluation of this."

Musharraf visited China as recently as April and was due to attend the Beijing Olympics until domestic political turbulence kept him at home.

China is a major arms supplier to Pakistan and has also helped it build civil nuclear plants. The two countries signed a free trade pact in 2006 and hope to raise two-way trade to $15 billion within the next five years.

But Beijing has also been concerned about Islamic Uighur militants in its far west, who many analysts say have drawn support from Pakistan.

(Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Nick Macfie)