BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, June 12 ------ The Chinese naval training ship Qi Jiguang (Hull 83), which is on a cadet training and visit mission, departed for the Philippines on Thursday after concluding its goodwill tour of Brunei.
Brunei held a grand farewell ceremony at the Muara Port. More than 200 people, including Chinese Ambassador to Brunei Xiao Jianguo, Defense Attache Dai Qilin, representatives of Chinese companies, local Bruneians, and representatives of the Royal Brunei Navy, went to the port to see the ship off. After leaving the port, the ship Qi Jiguang held joint sailing exercises with the Royal Brunei Navy offshore patrol vessel KDB Darussalam at the designated site.
During their visit to Brunei, the representatives of the Chinese navy members paid courtesy calls, made professional exchanges, conducted beach environmental protection activities and cultural and sports interactions with officers and soldiers of the Royal Brunei Navy. At Brunei's naval training center, the Chinese navy cadets also held in-depth exchanges on personnel training with their Bruneian counterparts. During its stay, the Qi Jiguang held an on-deck reception attended by about 200 people, including officials from the Brunei government, army and members of the diplomatic corps, and representatives from local Chinese communities and Chinese enterprises in Brunei.
The Qi Jiguang organized five open-day activities for the public, attracting more than 1,000 visitors. Princess Hajah Masna, Ambassador-at-Large at Brunei's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and her spouse were among the guests. Accompanied by Chinese Ambassador Xiao and Dai, the princess inspected the honor guard on the ship. "China and Brunei are close neighbors across the sea, mutually trusted friends and partners with common development goals. I hope both sides can continue to deepen cooperation in the future," she said during her visit.
Named after Qi Jiguang, a national hero of the Chinese Ming Dynasty, the ship was commissioned in February 2017 as the largest and most modernized Chinese homegrown professional training ship. This is its second visit to Brunei.
Source: manilatimes.net
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