Chinese naval fleet sails to fight piracy

BEIJING, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- A three-ship fleet will comprise China's first far away overseas naval mission since 1949 to fight piracy off the coast of Somalia, officials said.

As the fleet, led by flagship destroyer Wuha, prepared to set sail Friday on its 3-month mission from the Yalong Bay Navy Base on Hainan Island, the Chinese navy vowed to protect both its own as well as foreign ships from pirates, whose activities in the waters off Somalia have become a major international concern.

Rear Adm. Du Jingchen said the mission, made up of two destroyers, a large supply vessel and about 1,000 navy personnel, is prepared for "complicated and long-term mission" for at least three months, China Daily reported.

Du said the mission would assign a special force of 60 soldiers to escort ships that seek protection. However, he was quoted as saying the navy has no plans to take action against the pirates on land or fire at them unless Chinese vessels, civilian or military, are attacked.

Pirates off the Somalia coast have seized more than 40 vessels this year, and collected $30 million in ransom, the report said.

China's state-run Xinhua news agency said the fleet will join in multinational patrols of the Gulf of Aden.

It said the fleet is equipped with ship-borne missiles, cannon and light weapons, and carries helicopters.

The report said the two destroyers, among China's most sophisticated war vessels, were indigenously designed and manufactured.