On January 2, 2005, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China, State Councilor and Defense Minister of China General Cao Gangchuan sent a letter to Maldivian Minister of Defense Ismail Shafeeu, to extend deep condolences to the Maldivian victims of the tsunami disaster and express sincere sympathy to the families of the deceased on behalf of the Ministry of Defense and the People's Liberation Army of China.
The military of China and Maldives enjoy friendly relations. To show the friendship borne by the military of China towards the military of Maldives, the Ministry of Defense of China decided to donate 50,000 US dollars of assistance in cash order to its counterpart in Maldives for the relief and rehabilitation efforts in the aftermath of the disaster. General Cao indicated that he believes the Maldivian people and military will definitely overcome the disaster and the difficulties and rebuild their homes.
