Japanese ship's arrival marks significant event

ZHANJIANG, Guangdong: People walking along the seafront of Zhanjiang today will find it quite different - all navy ships in port will be decorated with colorful flags to signal a significant diplomatic event.

The first Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (SDF) ship to visit China will arrive here, headquarters of the South China Sea Fleet, this afternoon.

Sources told China Daily that the Shenzhen, a missile destroyer which visited Japan in November as the first Chinese military ship to visit the near neighbor, will lead the 4,650-ton Japanese ship, Sazanami, into port.