"With regard to this, our consistent policy is that we stand ready to improve relations with any country based on the five principles of peaceful co-existence," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Sun Yuxi told media persons in a routine briefing.

"We have maintained quite friendly relations with neighbouring countries and we stand ready to further these relations," the spokesman, who appeared unenthusiastic said.

The idea of quadrangular type of relationship between Moscow, Beijing, Islamabad and New Delhi to promote security and stability in Asia was floated during the just-concluded visit of Pakistani premier Nawaz Sharif to Moscow.

Diplomatic sources said Primakov's call for the four-nation cooperation is one step further to his idea of a Russia-India-China triangle mooted during the Russian Prime Minister's visit to India last December.

Beijing hadearlier rejected the idea of forming a strategic triangle between Russia, China and India citing its independent foreign policy.

However, diplomatic sources told PTI here that the inclusion of Pakistan into the three-nation cooperation has been made at the behest of China, Islamabad's closest ally.

Commenting on the proposed quadrangle relationship, senior advisor of China Institute of International Studies (CIIS), Cheng Ruisheng said, his country was concerned at the conduct of the United States and its effort to dominate world affairs by the use of military power, by passing UN Security Council.

"There is an urgent need for increased cooperation between China, India and other nations to strengthen the role of the UN in world affairs," he told PTI while cautioning against embarking on any move which will rekindle or revive the Cold War era.