The Chinese naval hospital ship Peace Ark, which is on the Mission Harmony-2024, arrived at the port of Cotonou, the Republic of Benin, for a 7-day friendly visit.
This is Peace Ark's first visit to Benin, and also the first time a Chinese naval ship has paid a visit to the country since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Medical teams on the vessel will provide service for local residents during their stay.
Local residents, Chinese citizens in Benin, and representatives of Chinese-invested companies boarded the naval hospital ship for a visit during its public opening.
"We are Chinese working in Benin. The moment we saw the arrival of Peace Ark coming from our homeland, we were excited, and tears filled our eyes because we feel the strength of our country," said Xu Hewei, a Chinese in Benin.
This is the 10th Mission Harmony for "Peace Ark" since its commissioning in 2008.
This mission will be the longest voyage undertaken by the "Peace Ark" among all the Harmony missions, and it is set to visit a record number of 13 countries.
Chinese naval hospital ship makes maiden visit to Benin
Solly Mapaila, general secretary of the South African Communist Party (SACP), criticized some countries jeopardizing the international rule-based system with wars, violence and sanctions as he elaborated on challenges multilateralism faces and Global South cooperation in a recent interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) in Beijing.
Mapaila called these countries' unilateral actions "disruptive" to international order.
"The changing nature of the strategic relations, if you like, the world balance of forces, that the capitalist world has practically devoured and are destroying international rule-based system. They are destroying international law. They arrogated to themselves the leaders of the world. They are trying to impose their ideas as universal ideas, and in the context of an emerging multipolar world largely and centered around China and to an extent as well the Russian Federation, they found it difficult to allow this to happen and they become disruptive. That's why they have launched wars, violence, sanctions, interference in countries' internal affairs, interference in security threats and everything else," he said.
Against uncertainties posed by unilateralism, Mapaila highlighted the importance for the Global South to show solidarity like they have at the Bandung Conference in Indonesia and the Tricontinental Conference in Cuba.
"Now, the Global South has a necessity to relive the moment of Bandung in which the South came together to struggle and to consolidate their solidarity against colonialism. This conference took place in Indonesia, and later on the Tricontinental Conference that took place in Cuba, which we are celebrating [the 60th anniversary now], in 1966, where Africa, Asia and Middle East, Latin America came together to discuss the challenges of colonialism and how to come out and support one another so that solidarity is important today," he said.
Mapaila led a delegation of South African politicians to visit China in March, where the two sides discussed deepening ties and exchanged views on international and regional issues of common interest.
Wars, sanctions destroying international law: SACP general secretary
