Chinese naval medical ship makes 1st visit to Venezuela

Chinese naval medical ship makes 1st visit to Venezuela

Sep 23, 2018

The Chinese naval hospital ship Daishan Dao, also known as the Peace Ark 

A Chinese naval medical vessel has traveled for the first time to the Venezuelan port of La Guaira, amid apparently growing ties between Beijing and Caracas.

The hospital ship, named Daishan Dao, also known as the Peace Ark, arrived on Saturday for an eight-day stop, Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.

The ship has the capacity for 300 beds, 20 ICU beds, and eight operating rooms.

Forty major surgeries a day can be done on it, in addition to X-ray, ultrasound, and CT scanning. It also has a communications system to allow teleconferencing with doctors and specialists at other hospitals.

During the stay, the navy ship’s commander is to conduct “friendly visits” with Venezuelan officials, according to Xinhua. The news agency said the ship’s commander would be visiting military and political officials and inspecting Venezuelan military and medical facilities.

The Chinese visit comes after President Nicolas Maduro’s trip to Beijing earlier this month.

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Maduro said during that trip that he had secured new commitments from China on financing his country’s trouble-hit oil industry and other sectors.

China has been a major supporter of Venezuela over the years, with more than a decade of oil-for-loan agreements.

Hyper-inflation and shortages of basic commodities have forced an estimated 2.3 million Venezuelans to flee the country since 2015.

Venezuelan officials blame the United States’ sanctions on the Latin American nation for the crisis. Critics blame government mismanagement.