China's three warships plan to depart Friday on a mission to protect Chinese vessels and crews from pirate attacks in the Gulf of Aden and Somali waters, and the Chinese Ministry of National Defense held a news conference on Tuesday, Dec. 23 on the naval escorting mission. A flurry of questions raised by reporters at the news conference, both Chinese and foreign, have indicated high attention of the international community on the escorting operation of Chinese navy.
In fact, the piracy scourge in the Gulf of Eden and Somali waters has been a thorny, global hazard over recent years. The United Nations' Security Council has adopted four resolutions since June this year for fighting piracy in Somali waters. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU) have sent naval ships on patrol to deal with piracy. Meanwhile, the navies of the United States, Russia, France and India have all stepped up the frequency of their naval maneuvers in the troubled sea area.
Both the Somali Federal Transitional Government and the International Community have endorsed the decision of the Chinese government on naval escorting operations in Somali waters, which was also appreciated by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who acknowledged that it mirrors a very important role China is playing in the international affairs.
In view of such severe, grievous threats faced by Chinese vessels and crews in the problematic sea area, this move made by the Chinese government embodies the governing concept of "making the people first" and its resolve or determination to safeguard China's interests. A total of 1,265 ships sailed past the Gulf of Eden and Somali waters in the first 11 months of this year, and 20 percent of them were attacked by pirates, according to relevant statistics released by China's Foreign Ministry. Since early this year, there were seven hijack cases involving China, including two Chinese ships and 42 Chinese seafarers and five foreign ships with Chinese seafarers. Up to date, there remains one Chinese fishing boat and 18 crew members held captive.
As a responsible big nation, China will also undoubtedly play a positive role in safeguarding the prestige of the UN and rebuilding peace and security in the Gulf of Eden and Somali waters. It is also one of the Chinese mission's main purposes to protect the vessels shipping humanitarian relief goods by such international organizations as the World Food Program.
As a matter of course, the current naval escorting mission will display the confidence and capability of Chinese naval fleet in dealing with varies security threats and performing and fulfilling a variety of military tasks. With regard to this mission, some foreign media have asserted that it is the first-ever effort for China's navy to show its military strength beyond the Pacific Ocean, and even referred to it as a "signal flare" for an all-round forward march overseas; the Chinese navy, however, would by no means make a "show of force" but actively defend the world peace and stability with its actions.
The permanent solution for eradicating Somali piracy, the Chinese government maintains, is to help Somalia restore peace, stability and development. And the international community has reached unanimity that Somali piracy has resulted from 17 years of uninterrupted civil wars and ensuing political and economic crises in the country. To help Somalia with its reconstruction, China gave it 20 million RMB yuan of assistance gratis in May 2007, and donated 300,000 US dollars aimed at assisting the African Union (AU) in August 2007 and, in January this year it again offered a humanitarian aid of half a million dollars to Somalia through the World Health Organization (WTO). Beyond any doubt, these moves of China's would prompt Somalia's efforts for peace and reconstruction.
The task force, which comprises two destroyers and a supply ship of the Chinese navy's South China Sea Fleet, is expected to leave Sanya city of southern Hainan province on December 26 for the Gulf of Eden and Somali waters. People in China are fully convinced that the Chinese navy will live up to great expectations placed on them, and that their mission will certainly bolster China's image as a very responsible big nation with an active rule to play in advancing peace and security off the Somali coast.
By People's Daily Online, and its author is Zhongsheng
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article