Pakistani naval ship SAIF arrives in Shanghai on a goodwill visit and bilateral naval exercise

December 01,2017

Pakistani naval ship SAIF arrived today in Shanghai on a goodwill visit and to participate in joint naval exercise in a bid to boost defence cooperation with their Chinese counterpart. 
The naval ship was welcomed at the Wusong Naval Port by Pakistan’s Consul General in Shanghai Mr. Naeem Khan, senior Captain Wei Xiaodong of PLA and officials of the government of Shanghai municipality. On its arrival, a band of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy played welcoming tunes. PNS SAIF is commandeered by Captain Shahzad Iqbal, Commander 18^thDestroyer Squadron of Pakistan Navy. 
Speaking on the occasion, Captain Iqbal highlighted the significance of the visit and brotherly relations between Pakistan and China. “We traveled more than 9,000 Nautical Miles from Pakistan to Shanghai. This distance will reduce manifold on completion of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.” He said that PNS SAIF was built in 2010 in Shanghai and this was its first visit to Shanghai.
Captain Iqbal shared that the ship will participate in a bilateral naval exercise which he hoped would be advanced and meaningful. This would be the 5^th Joint Naval Exercise in the series. Pakistan Navy and PLA Navy have longstanding relations. 
On its journey to Shanghai from Pakistan, PNS SAIF docked in Colombo, Sri Lanka and Pattaya, Thailand. After Shanghai, it plans to visit ports in the Philippines and Malaysia.