New Delhi:Despite the strain in India-China ties, the navies of the two nations engaged in a rare joint operation in the high seas Sunday to rescue a merchant ship that was hijacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. While a hovering Indian Navy helicopter gave air cover, 18 armed Chinese Navymen jumped on board the 178-metre hijacked ship to sanitise it.
After getting a distress call about the attack by pirates on the cargo vessel OS 35 on Saturday night with 19 Filipino crew members, the Indian Navy sent its two frontline warships, INS Mumbai and INS Tarkash, while the Chinese Navy also moved in its missile frigate Yulin. The two Indian ships were in the region as part of an overseas deployment.
The merchant ship was travelling from Kelang in Malaysia to port city of Aden in Yemen and following the attack, the crew had locked themselves in the 'citadel', a safe room inside the vessel, according to the Indian Navy. While the Indian Navy deployed a helicopter that provided air cover, the Chinese side sent in a team of 18 personnel to sanitise the 178-metre-long merchant ship registered in Pacific island of Tuvalu.
At the end of the operation, the Chinese navy thanked Indian navy for its role in successful operation. The Indian Navy also returned compliment to their Chinese counterparts. "In a show of international maritime cooperation against piracy, a boarding party from the nearby Chinese Navy ship went on board the merchant ship, while the Indian Naval helicopter provided air cover for the operation.”
