China, India, Japan to step up cooperation to check piracy

BEIJING: China, India and Japan will step up their coordination and cooperation on international naval escort activities to check the growing menace of piracy, Chinese defense ministry said today.

"The integrated escort schedule will be arranged on a quarterly basis," spokesman Geng Yansheng said, noting that the strengthened coordination and cooperation could increase the efficiency of escort operations and better safeguard international navigation safety to check piracy.

The schedule-making process will be led by the reference country quarterly, Geng said was quoted as saying by state-run Xinhua new agency. He explained that, as the first reference country, China has already proposed its schedule, and the other countries involved in the operation will formulate their own schedules according to China's.

Geng noted that China has been playing an active role in promoting international naval escort operations and has boosted its exchange of intelligence, mutual visits among commanders, and joint naval escorts and drills with relevant countries and organizations.

According to Geng, 10 Chinese navy flotillas, including 25 warships, 22 helicopters and over 8,400 officers and soldiers, have been deployed to the Gulf of Aden for escort missions since December 2008.