Deepening ties

The exercise was divided into harbor and sea phases. The harbor phase included conferences, coordination meetings and safety briefings, while the sea phase involved exercises focusing on maritime security operations.

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said that the relationship between the navies of Pakistan and China is strong. Pakistan also has strong defense ties with China and a lot of cooperation in defense projects is under way which would further enhance bilateral defense capabilities for peace and security.

He said the relationship between Pakistan and China would grow further with the passage of time because of the significance of the region and the importance of the Arabian Sea.

"This is an excellent exercise. It has great tactical and operational value for the navy from the training point of view. They are learning to conduct integrated exercises with so many countries," the president said.

The participation of a number of countries demonstrates that Pakistan is determined to work with other nations to make the seas safe and secure, Musharraf said.

The Chinese ships were to leave Karachi on March 13 and take about two weeks to arrive back home. This is the first time that Chinese warships have traveled so far without a refueling tanker.

"To refuel our warships, we have to learn how to coordinate with ports or countries along the route and get support from them," said Commander Wei Xiaodong, a Chinese observer on a Pakistani warship, adding that it is a test of the survival capacity of the Chinese Navy.

In the 7,000-km journey from Zhejiang Province to Karachi, the two frigates stopped for refueling in Colombo, capital of Sri Lanka. They were to visit Indonesia for refueling on the homeward journey.

A refueling tanker provides convenience but at the same time costs a lot of money, Wei said, referring to the increased consumption of energy and additional naval crew.