JEDDAH: The Royal Saudi Naval Forces, represented by the Special Forces of the Western Fleet, carried out the mixed naval exercise Blue Sword 2019 with its Chinese counterpart, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy, in Jeddah on Sunday. The exercise, which took place at King Faisal Naval Base, was attended by the commander of the Western Fleet, Vice Admiral Faleh bin Abdulrahman Al-Faleh, and the Chinese military attache to the Kingdom, Senior Col. Lin Li. Navy Col. Abdullah Mohammed Al-Omari, director of the exercise, said that this joint exercise is within the framework of seeking to face all challenges, emphasize the many objectives aimed at achieving complete readiness, and maintain the security and peace of the region and the world. “The exercise targets building mutual trust, enhancing cooperation between the Saudi Royal Navy and the Chinese PLA Navy, exchanging experiences, developing the capacity of participants to combat maritime terrorism and piracy, and improving training and combat readiness,” he added. Lt. Col. Tarek bin Salem Al-Salem, adjutant of the exercise’s operations, presented a visual briefing on the activities, fields, title and phases of the exercise. Al-Faleh then announced the launch of the joint naval exercise, Blue Sword 2019, which runs for three weeks.