Chinese, Vietnamese navies hold exchange activities in Guangzhou

Visiting officers and sailors from the frigate Tran Hung Dao (Hull 015) of the Vietnam People’s Navy and their counterparts of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy have carried out multiple exchange activities in Guangzhou City of south China’s Guangdong Province to further enhance friendship and deepen mutual trust.

The frigate arrived in Guangzhou on Monday for a four-day goodwill visit.

Officers and sailors from the two navies conducted cultural exchanges by showcasing traditional culture through folk art performances.

During a welcoming reception dinner, Chinese naval officers and sailors performed traditional artistic programs such as a guzheng solo and Sichuan opera face-changing, while their Vietnamese counterparts performed the traditional conical hat dance and sang classic Chinese songs.

At the naval port, officers and sailors from the two navies made reciprocal visits.

On board the Chinese naval frigate Enshi (Hull 627), a Chinese guide explained the vessel’s weaponry and equipment, daily training routines, and naval culture to their Vietnamese counterparts.

On the sports field, the two sides also held a friendly tug-of-war competition and professional exchanges in line-throwing and knot-tying.

During the visit, the Vietnamese side will also host a deck reception, and the Chinese side has specially arranged for the Vietnamese naval officers and sailors to visit the former site of the Vietnam Youth Revolutionary Comrades Association to recall their shared history.

“Whether it’s cultural and sports exchanges or ship visits, all these activities are continuously enhancing our mutual trust. I hope there will be more opportunities in the future to carry forward this friendship,” said Yang Jiangtao, a sailor serving with a unit of the PLA Southern Theater Command Navy.

Zhao Leji, chairman of China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, held talks with Tomio Okamura, speaker of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic, in Beijing on Thursday.

Noting that this year marks the 10th anniversary of the China-Czech strategic partnership, Zhao, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said China stands ready to work with the Czech side to carry forward traditional friendship, enhance mutual understanding and trust, strengthen exchanges and cooperation, and promote the sound and steady growth of bilateral relations.

Zhao called on both sides to consolidate the political foundation of their ties, sustain the momentum of improvement in bilateral relations, and resume and step up exchanges and interactions at all levels and across all fields.

Both sides should further tap cooperation potential, give full play to the role of mechanisms such as the economic joint committee between China and Czech and the China-Central and Eastern European Countries Expo, explore ways to strengthen cooperation in new energy, electric vehicles and other fields, and support enterprises of the two countries in expanding investment cooperation, Zhao added.

The NPC is ready to enhance friendly exchanges with the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic, carry out mutual learning and exchanges on legislative supervision, economic development, improvement of people’s livelihood, formulate, revise and ratify legal documents conducive to bilateral cooperation, and maintain close communication and collaboration within multilateral mechanisms such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Zhao said.

Zhao also said China is willing to work with all countries, including the Czech Republic, to strengthen exchanges and cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence and promote the establishment of a fair and equitable global governance system for AI.

Okamura said the Czech Republic adheres to the one-China policy, adding that it hopes to strengthen tourism cooperation with China and welcome more Chinese tourists to visit the Czech Republic, expand cooperation in areas such as economy and trade, cultural relic exhibitions, and direct flights, and enhance people-to-people exchanges.

The Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic stands ready to strengthen friendly exchanges with China’s NPC and enhance the friendship between the two peoples, Okamura added.