Navy completes military exercise in the Pacific

The North Sea Fleet of the People's Liberation Army Navy has completed a military exercise in western areas of the Pacific Ocean.

The exercise was the first large-scale action aimed at testing the coordination between different forces.

A seven-vessel fleet participated in the exercise, China Central Television reported. A number of records were broken in the exercise, which was conducted in early and mid October, the report said.

The exercise focused on defense techniques against warplanes and submarines, according to the PLA Daily.

The fleet, with the Harbin as its commanding ship, conducted multi-disciplinary training in different areas of the west Pacific after it entered the ocean through the Miyako Strait, an important waterway linking the East China Sea and the Pacific.

The formation made full use of the complicated sea conditions and carried out targeted training operations, with training actions that realistically simulated a real-war environment spanning day and night.

Operations such as escorting fishing boats and life-rescue actions were part of the exercise.

Yuan Yubo, the exercise's commander, told CCTV that the action covered 26 items and greatly increased the commanding capacity of the formation and of the individual ships.

"This regular training exercise in remote areas is aimed at further improving our ability for multiple military tasks, forging a fighting spirit among soldiers, and increasing their confidence and determination to win wars," Yuan said.

The North Sea Fleet, one of the PLA's three major fleets, is in charge of defending the Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea.

As more new ships have recently been put into service in the navy, the qualification of soldiers has also improved.

"The commanders of all of the PLA's new ships have had the experience of carrying out missions in remote oceans," Yuan told the PLA Daily.

wangxiaodong@chinadaily.com.cn