New surveillance ship launched

China launched a new marine surveillance ship on Oct 14 in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.

The 1,337-ton ship, Haijian 8002, is 79.9 meters long and can travel up to 5,000 nautical miles (9,260 km) without refueling.

The new ship will patrol the waters in East China's Fujian province for surveillance and law enforcement and to safeguard China's marine rights and interests, the Fujian Daily reported.

The report said the China Marine Surveillance under the State Oceanic Administration plans to build a total of 36 ships in 10 coastal provinces to strengthen the country's maritime forces on its waters.

The new ship, which was built in eight months, was the first of those to be put to use.