By XueFei and Liang Lihu
SINGAPORE, Feb. 26 -- The 36th Chinese naval escort taskforce held a joint naval drill with the Singapore navy in waters near Singapore on February 24. The joint drill lasted about eight hours and was successfully completed at 7 p.m. on the same day.
The Chinese side sent the guided-missile destroyer Guiyang (Hull 119) and the guided-missile frigate Zaozhuang (Hull 542), and the Singaporean side sent frigates RSS Intrepid and RSS Sovereignty to participate in the drill. The drill mainly involves such subjects as communication exercise, formation movement and joint search and rescue.
According to Lyu Dongfang, the commander of the 36th Chinese naval escort taskforce, the drill has strengthened the professional exchanges between the two navies, boosted mutual trust and enhanced friendship.
Before the joint drill, the 36th Chinese naval escort taskforce has completed 38 escort missions on 52 Chinese and foreign ships and participated in the multinational exercise AMAN-21 in waters near Karachi, Pakistan in mid-February.