Beijing, 22 August 2024 (TDI): The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy recently held joint naval drills with the Egyptian Navy in the Mediterranean Sea, with observers on Wednesday underlining the PLA Navy’s strides toward blue water operations and the deepening of friendships with its foreign counterparts.
After completing a 5-day friendly visit to Egypt, the Type 052D guided missile destroyer Jiaozuo and the Type 903A comprehensive replenishment ship Honghu of the PLA Navy’s 46th escort task group embarked from the Egyptian port city Alexandria on Monday and held joint maritime drills in the Mediterranean Sea with the Egyptian side, the PLA Navy said in a statement on Wednesday.
The joint drills took place in waters to the north of Alexandria, as the Jiaozuo and the Honghu joined forces with the Egyptian Navy’s FREMM multipurpose frigate Al-Galala and carried out training courses including formation maneuvering, communications coordination, and maritime replenishment positioning, the PLA Navy said.
During the exercise, the two navies’ ships took turn to command in close coordination, and skillfully completed all trainings before holding a separation ceremony, the PLA Navy said.
During the Chinese warships’ visit in Alexandria from August 15 to Monday, sailors from the two countries visited each other’s ships and took part in activities including professional exchanges and soccer friendly matches, as the visit considerably promoted exchanges between the two sides and deepened friendship between the two nations, according to the PLA Navy.
Also Read More: China and Egypt to strengthen bilateral relations
Before visiting Egypt, the two Chinese naval ships visited St. Petersburg in celebration of Russia’s navy day, after which they held joint drills with the Russian Navy in the Gulf of Finland in late July, according to the PLA Navy.
The PLA Navy vessels’ consecutive tours to Russia and Egypt and joint exercises with them show deep friendships and high levels of pragmatic cooperation, a Chinese military expert said.
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