PORT, QINGDAO, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA, Sunday, 21 April 2019 – KDB DARUTTAQWA
arrived at Da Gang Harbour, Qingdao, the People’s Republic of China to participate in the Multinational Naval Activities of the 70th Anniversary of the Founding of the PLA Navy and the South East Asia Maritime exercise 2019. Present at the welcoming ceremony was the Commander of Submarine Flotilla, PLA Navy, Senior Captain Liu, Brunei Darussalam’s Defence Attache to the People’s Republic of China, 493 Lieutenant Colonel (U) Azmie Iskandar bin Ariffin, senior officials from the PLA Navy and representatives from the local media. The Commander of the Submarine Flotilla then proceeded for a ship tour aboard KDB DARUTTAQWA.
A group courtesy call was also conducted by participating ships’ Commanding Officers to the Commander of the North Sea Fleet, Rear Admiral Li Yujie, the Deputy Mayor of Qingdao, Zhang Deping and other civic leaders at Da Gang harbour, where plaque exchanges also took place
The International Fleet Review, part of the Multinational Naval Activities of the 70th Anniversary of the Founding of the PLA Navy, will take place on Tuesday, 23 April 2019 in waters off Qingdao. Also concurrently taking place is the Southeast Asia Maritime Exercise 2019, where initial exercise discussions will commence on 24 April 2019, before ships again set out to sea on 26 April 2019 for the exercise proper, prior to commencing the second leg of their deployment to Busan, South Korea. Besides operational exercises and discussions, sports and cultural interactions will also be taking place throughout the duration in Qingdao.
The participation of KDB DARUTTAQWA in these exercises allows RBN to improve interoperability and gave the opportunity to forge friendships and build closer cooperation with the regional navies involved.
