SHANGHAI - China and the United States kicked off a Megaports Initiative pilot project in Shanghai on Wednesday amid efforts to improve security with radiation scans of cargo carriers at the city's Yangshan Port.

The initiative, an important part of Sino-US cooperation in fighting terrorism, is aimed at preventing the illegal transport of radioactive materials by installing detection systems in ports.

The two nations signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the initiative in November 2005 and began technical talks in February 2006. The talks concluded in May 2007.