New Delhi:  The union sports ministry has ties with eight countries, including China, for cooperation in the field of sports.

Sports Minister Jitendra Singh, in his response to a question in the Lok Sabha, informed that India has signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with Argentina, Brazil, Belarus, China, Cuba, Turkey, Mauritius and New Zealand.

"The tie-up with the countries provide for exchange of experts and information in various fields such as sports science, sports education, sports management, sports infrastructure development, fitness education and fitness development programme," said the minister.

Talks are on with Canada for a collaboration in the field of sports medicine, he added.

"There have been some preliminary discussions with Canada regarding collaborations in sports medicine but this has not yet converted into a formal proposal for co-operation."