Inclusion Criteria:

1. Male or female adults aged ≥40 years, who have signed an Informed Consent Form prior to initiation of any study-related procedure.
2. Patients with moderate to severe stable COPD (Stage II or Stage III) according to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) Guidelines 2008.
3. Current or ex-smokers who have a smoking history of at least 10 pack years.
4. Patients with a post-bronchodilator FEV1 ≥30% and < 80% of the predicted normal, and post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC < 0.7 at Visit 2 (day -14)
5. Patients, according to daily electronic diary data between Visit 2 (-14) and Visit 3 (day 1), with a total score of 1 or more on at least 4 of the last 7 days prior to Visit 3.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Pregnant women or nursing mothers (pregnancy confirmed by positive urine pregnancy test).
2. Women of child-bearing potential, unless using an approved method of medical or surgical contraception.
3. Patients requiring long term oxygen therapy (> 15 h a day) on a daily basis for chronic hypoxemia, or who have been hospitalized for an exacerbation of their airways disease in the 6 weeks prior to Visit 1 or between Visit 1 (day -21) and Visit 3 (day 1).
4. Patients who have had a respiratory tract infection within 6 weeks prior to Visit 1 (day -21).
5. Patients who, in the judgment of the investigator or the responsible Novartis personnel, have a clinically relevant laboratory abnormality or a clinically significant condition.
6. Patients with any history of asthma indicated by (but not limited to) a blood eosinophil count > 600/mm3 (at visit 1) and onset of symptoms prior to age 40 years.
7. Patients with a history of long QT syndrome or whose QTc measured at Visit 1 (day -21) (Fridericia method) is prolonged (>450 ms for males or > 470 ms for females

Other protocol-defined inclusion/exclusion criteria may apply