agreements with China Mobile Communications Corp. (CMCC) and China Construction Bank (CCB). The agreements were reached in Washington during discussions at the fringes of the Strategic Economic Dialogue between China and the United States.

Under the agreement, CMCC, the largest mobile phone provider in the world, will look to purchase data network equipment and services from Cisco and will work with Cisco on a project involving Internet Protocol over wavelength-division multiplexing project as well as the deployment of the Cisco TelePresence system.

In addition to the deployment of Cisco TelePresence, CCB, one of China's "big four" banks, will collaborate with Cisco on the construction of a data center at its head office as well as a core network for the bank.

"It's a great honor for Cisco to be a key participant in the signing of economic and trade deals between China and the United States," said John Ng, senior vice president and general manager, Service Provider Operations, Cisco China. "Cisco has cooperated with CMCC and CCB over the years, and is committed to becoming a trustworthy partner of local customers. The two deals signed today have further proved that Cisco's leading technologies, products and solutions have been fully recognized by customers and also demonstrates Cisco's strong commitment to the Chinese market and customers in the long run."

"The Chinese market is of strategic importance to Cisco, "said Thomas Lam, president of Cisco China. "Cisco will further implement its $16 billion multiyear innovation and sustainability initiative in accordance with our corporate strategy in the country over the next stage. We will actively participate in and help with the development of the information industry in China, in order to achieve a win-win with the local industry."