Song Xi on escort duty Photo: Courtesy of Song Xi

"This is the Chinese naval escort taskforce. If you need help, please call me on channel 16." 

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of China's restoration of its legal seat in the United Nations, members of the peacekeeping force, familiar with this cruise announcement in the Gulf of Aden, felt a surge of emotion.

"Today, I am proud to have been a Chinese naval soldier and I feel fortunate to have been able to participate in the escort operations sent by the UN and witness China's ability and commitment to maintain regional and world peace as a major responsible country," Song Xi, former member of the PLA Navy Marine Corps, recalls with pride her passionate days as a member of the UN peacekeeping force.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the restoration of the lawful seat of the People's Republic of China in the UN and the 31st year since China's armed forces first participated in UN peacekeeping operations (UNPKOs). Over the past 31 years, China has sent over 50,000 peacekeepers to UN peacekeeping operations and is currently the second-largest financial contributor to both the United Nations and UN peacekeeping operations.

Chinese peacekeepers, with their brave and tenacious spirit of dedication to duty, have fully displayed the demeanor of PLA soldiers internationally and won unanimous praise from the UN, the governments and the people of the host countries, and peacekeepers from other countries. Their exemplary efforts also became a beacon of hope for the young Chinese generation. 

Most meaningful task

The round of applause at the commemorative meeting reminded Song of the warm welcome Chinese troops received by locals during their missions and visits.  

Born in 1994, Song is now a full-time counselor at Peking University. She dreamed of joining the army since childhood and in 2015 she enlisted and became an amphibious scout with the PLA Navy Marine Corps. In December 2016, after a hard training course, Song was selected as the only female member of the 25th Chinese naval escort taskforce to carry out escort missions in the Gulf of Aden, off the coast of Somalia, a peacekeeping mission conducted by China in accordance with UN resolutions.

"If you choose to join the military, you have to be the best soldier you can be and be assigned to the most meaningful missions," she said.

Song pointed out that during the escorts in the Gulf of Aden, what was most memorable to her was the alarm of surprise drills that often went off late at night. "We spend a long time at sea and life is relatively monotonous. In order to prevent us from slacking off and ensure that the task can be completed smoothly and perfectly, we often conduct surprise exercise drills, which would make us stay on guard at all times," she explained.

It is also because after a long period of rigorous training, a well-trained crews always maintain excellent combat skills and are self-disciplined in their life and work habits, Song noted. "I have full trust in my comrades because they have given me enough sense of security," she said, adding that "the friendship of the warriors on board the Chinese convoy ships is beyond life and death."

On April 9, 2017, a Tuvalu cargo ship met an unknown number of pirates who boarded and attacked. With warships from five countries in nearby waters, only the Chinese frigate Yulin reacted in time. A team of 16 Chinese special operations soldiers was quickly deployed and after 7 hours of a thrilling rescue mission, the 19 crew members were successfully rescued and the pirates were apprehended.

"In a completely unfamiliar environment, no one knew from which direction the bullets would come. Every soldier on the frontline was in danger of losing his life." Song, who was in charge of security in the rear and always ready for reinforcements, recalled, adding that "fortunately, in the end, we did not shoot a single bullet to successfully complete the mission."

Song recalled that one of her proudest moments on escort missions was when she saw the rescued foreign crew members holding the Chinese flag and giving the Chinese Navy thumbs up to say: "Thank you, China."

During the 25th Chinese naval escort taskforce visit to Australia, Song Xi salutes local female crew at a deck reception. Photo: Courtesy of Song Xi

Innumerable great achievements

On July 12, 2017, the 25th Chinese naval escort taskforce returned to China after successfully completing its tour and visiting Madagascar, Australia, New Zealand, and Vanuatu. The task lasted 208 days and the three ships sailed a total of 119,768 nautical miles. They completed 30 escorts for 62 Chinese and foreign ships, intercepted 13 groups of 82 suspected pirate boats and achieved the goal of ensuring 100 percent safety to the ships under escort and the taskforce itself. 

"During missions and visits to countries along the route we always get a warm welcome from local people and the overseas Chinese nationals. This is the best reward for our soldiers to fulfill our missions and duties," Song said.

Since the first Chinese naval group carried out the inaugural escort mission in December 2008 until now China has sent 39 escort formations to take part in peacekeeping missions.

Remember the fallen - 21 Chinese sacrificed their lives in UN peacekeeping missions. Graphic:Xu Zihe/GT

Over the past 10 years, the Chinese naval convoy has not only safely escorted more than 6,600 Chinese and foreign ships through the waters of the Gulf of Aden, but also successfully completed missions like the evacuation of Libya and Yemen, the search and rescue of the lost Malaysia Airlines airliner, emergency water supply to the Maldives, and the maritime escort of Syrian chemical weapons, according to media reports.

"Once the UN was a very distant concept to me and as I served in the Gulf of Aden, it became clear to me that it represented the hopes and beliefs of many for peace," Song said, noting that as China's comprehensive strength becomes stronger and the role it plays in the international arena becomes more important, the UN is becoming less remote to the Chinese people. More people are joining the UN's actions and contributing their strength to this idea which makes Song feel grateful and hopeful.