 Japanese destroyer arrives in Zhanjiang
By Li Xiaokun (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-06-25 07:18 ZHANJIANG, Guangdong: A Japanese navy ship arrived at the Zhanjiang military port yesterday - the first by a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (SDF) vessel to China. Shenzhen, a missile destroyer and the first Chinese navy ship to visit Tokyo last November, lead the Japanese ship Sazanami, into port. Xiao Xinnian, deputy commander of the South China Sea Fleet (SCSF), and commanding officer of the Shenzhen during the Tokyo trip, applauded the long-expected arrival of the Japanese ship. "I'm very happy today. We finally finished the first round of exchanges between the two armed forces," he told China Daily. China staged a welcoming ceremony of unusually high level for the Sazanami. Su Shiliang, the SCSF commander who rarely appears at such welcoming ceremonies, accompanied Shinichi Tokumaru, commander of the Sazanami, to review an SCSF honor guard. "The visit of the Sazanami will help boost the strategic and mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Japan," Su said. Yang Zheng, a naval officer who visited Japan with the Shenzhen, said he had long expected the arrival of the Japanese ship. "We had interesting exchanges in sports with the Japanese navy in Tokyo. Now I'm looking forward to a game of football with them on Thursday," Yang said. On arrival, the ship immediately delivered quake relief supplies it had brought, 300 blankets and 2,600 emergency food items. The Sazanami has set up notices in Chinese to help local people visiting the ship. Tokumaru began and concluded his speech to the Chinese navy in Mandarin to express his sincerity. "On the eve of the visit, (Japanese) Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba told me that deepening of common understanding is essential to a truly reliable relationship," he said. Officers and personnel of both sides will visit each other's ships today. Naval mutual visits delayed more than eight years, has finally taken place. Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao denied any public anger in China toward the visit at yesterday's regular news briefing. "Strengthening our exchanges and cooperation in the field of defense will be supported by the people," he said. (China Daily 06/25/2008 page3) |
