SHANGHAI, July 5. /TASS/. Two Russian missile corvettes called at the Shanghai port on Wednesday in the first friendly visit by Russia’s naval ships after the lifting of anti-coronavirus restrictions, a TASS correspondent reported from the scene.
The corvettes Gromkiy and Sovershenniy moored at the wharf of the Chinese naval base located at the confluence of the Huangpu and Yangtze Rivers. The Russian Pacific Fleet’s warships were welcomed in a solemn ceremony to the accompaniment of the military band by the naval base chief, a representative of the Shanghai Committee for Foreign Affairs and Russia’s Consul General in Shanghai Dmitry Lukyantsev.
Chinese naval sailors dressed in white parade uniforms and holding placards with welcome greetings in the Russian and Chinese languages lined up at the wharf to welcome their Russian counterparts.
"Long Live Friendship between Russia and China. We Heartily Welcome a Visit by a Formation of Russian Naval Ships to Shanghai," one of the placards read.
"On behalf of the consulate general, we welcome the call of two Russian naval ships at the Shanghai port. Their arrival is symbolic and very important. This is the first call by Pacific Fleet ships after the three-year pandemic period and this vividly shows that our states maintain exclusively close cooperation absolutely in all the directions, including the military and political sphere. This is especially important in the current international situation. We are confident that all the assigned objectives will be successfully implemented and the presence of Russian ships in hospitable Shanghai will once again demonstrate good, friendly and partner relations between Russia and China, in particular, between the armed forces of both countries," Lukyantsev told TASS.
The Russian naval ships Gromkiy and Sovershenniy will stay in Shanghai until July 11.