By Zhang Shengtao and Cao Wei
KORLA,XINJIANG,July 22 (ChinaMil) -- On Sunday morning, a 20-person team assigned to the Vietnamese military arrived in Korla competition area in northwest China’s Xinjiang Autonomous Region to participate in the International Army Games (IAG) 2019. This is the first foreign team to enter the competition area.
As the host of the competition in this area, the PLA Ground Force held an initiation ceremony at the supporting base to welcome the arrival of the Vietnamese team.
According to the custom of local Mongolian people, Senior Colonel Li Fu with a military training base in Korla, presented the pure white Hada, a ceremonial silk cloth to show respect and mellow wine as a sign of blessing and to pay tribute to the guests coming from afar.
In quoting a Vietnamese proverb "roasted snakehead fish and mellow good wine must be dedicated to good friends from far away (Ruou ngon phai co ban hien)", he expressed his joy in meeting fellow military colleagues from different countries. The Chinese side also presented badges to the Vietnamese counterparts and wished them excellent results in the IAG.
According to the officer in charge of the IAG affairs under the PLA Ground Force, within the general framework of Russia's IAG 2019, the PLA Ground Force has scheduled to hold and take part in four major competitions including "Suvorov Attack" as Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) Crew Competition, "Clear Sky" as Man-Portable Air Defence Missile Teams Competition, "Gunsmith Master" as Weapon Repair Competition, and "Safe Environment" as Nuclear Biological and Chemical (NBC) Reconnaissance Teams Competition in Korla, northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
A total of 25 teams from 12 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and South America attend this event. The games serve to provide a good opportunity for the participating countries to enhance mutual understanding and mutual friendship, and also act as a broad platform for further promoting multilateral military exchanges and cooperation.
