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Chinese Navy ready for prolonged mission in Somalia

By Cui Xiaohuo and Wang Hui (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2008-12-26 00:28

NAVAL BASE,YALONGBAY -- The Chinese navy, which on Friday embarks on its first overseas military mission since 1949, said it is ready for a prolonged mission in the Gulf of Adenagainst the Somali pirates.

A Chinese navy sailor guards on the deck of the missile destroyer "Wuhan", the flagship of a fleet composed with two destroyers and a large supply vessel, at a naval base in Sanya, South China's Hainan Province, December 25th, 2008. Du Jingchen, chief commander, said his three warships and near-1000 soldiers are ready for the mission in the Gulf of Aden against the Somali pirates. [chinadaily.com.cn]

Related readings:  Chinese vessels ready for Somalia mission  China confident, capable of patrolling off Somalia  Somalia welcomes Chinese naval deployment  Naval deployment to the seas off Somalia

Du Jingchen, chief commander of the mission, said his three warships and near-1000 soldiers, setting off from China’s south end Hainan at around 1:30 p.m. today, have prepared for “complicated and long-term maritime missions” over the coming few months.

Media earlier reported the mission would last three months, but naval officers said it could last longer if necessary.

“Because this is the first time for our navy to conduct a mission overseas, we can foresee unpredicted situations. But we have prepared for them,” said Rear Admiral Du, a veteran naval officer.

The commander was speaking to a small pack of Chinese journalists during a 20-minute meeting inside the missile destroyer “Wuhan”, the flagship of a fleet composed by two advanced destroyers and a large supply vessel from the Guangdong-based South China Sea Fleet.

Ding He, 21, a suntanned soldier on the flagship, said on the front deck he was too proud that he forgot the upset of not being allowed to swim in the best beach nationwide since he joined the fleet.

“But the pride is too hard to control. It washed all the pain of training away,” said theHebeinative, one of youngest soldiers in this mission.

It was not only the maiden voyage for Ding. The destroyer “Haikou”, completed in October 2003, will also have its debut overseas.

All three ships, clad in white paints and colorful flags, rest peacefully along with three other vessels Thursday at one bay in the city of Sanya. The ships were also visible from a world famed beach resort flocked by holiday goers, some of whom took pictures with the distant warships.

“As China’s power grows, so does the responsibility,” said Liu Hui, a 28-year-old traveler fromBeijing, who had also built a model warship from the sand.

“Our confidence comes from our capability,” said the chief commander, noting the advanced equipments onboard have demonstrated the strong side of the Chinese Navy.

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