Doha, 24 Oct. 2023
Report by Ashraf Siddiqui
The 44th Escort Taskforce of Chinese Naval warships upon completing their 4-month mission in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia are currently making a four-day courtesy visit to Qatar as they journey back to their home country.
This escort formation consists of the guided missile destroyer Zibo, the guided missile frigate Jingzhou and the comprehensive supply ship Qiandaohu. It carries 2 ship-based helicopters, dozens of special operations team members, and more than 700 officers and soldiers on task. Among them, the Zibo ship performed the escort mission for the first time.
The fleet arrived at the state of the art most modern Hamad Port on Tuesday afternoon after paying visit to Oman and Kuwait.
Subsequently, the three warship fleet will continue their voyage and pay a visit to the United Arab Emirates before returning to China.
Upon their arrival, Charge d’Affaires of China, Chen Yue, along with Brig. Gen. Staff (Navy) Khaled Jalil Al-Ruwaili, Director of Directorate of Education and Courses in the Qatar Navy; Chinese Defence Attache Col. Yang Yongzhi, and a large number of the Chinese overseas community members welcomed the fleet led by Commander of Escort Task Group 156, PLA Navy, Capt. Sun Bo and Capt. Li Jiamei.
Talking to web news www.asiantelegraphqatar.com, Chinese Charge d’Affaires Chen Yue mentioned that the courtesy visit of the Chinese fleet to Hamad Port will further bolster the strategic relationship between Qatar and China.
He pointed out that this marks the first ever visit by Chinese naval vessels to Hamad Port and emphasized the strong ties between China and Qatar across various sectors.
He expressed a desire to further strengthen these existing bilateral relations.
Commander of the Chinese Escort Task Group, Capt. Sun Bo, thanked the Qatar Navy and authorities at Hamad Port for facilitating the fleet.
He paid his gratitude to the Chinese embassy in Qatar and the overseas Chinese nationals on their memorable warm welcome.
He commended the port for its advanced and expansive facilities.
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