NANNING, May 26 (Xinhua) -- The inauguration ceremony for a Cook Islands inter-island vessel took place on Tuesday in the city of Wuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
The 43-meter-long multi-purpose vessel has been manufactured in Guangxi by a Chinese enterprise. After delivery, it will help facilitate transportation among multiple islands in the Cook Islands.
Addressing the ceremony, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown said that over the past 29 years, the Cook Islands and China have built a strong and enduring diplomatic relationship founded on mutual respect, cooperation and shared development goals.
"The delivery of the vessel directly supports our government's domestic shipping roadmap and our broader vision to strengthen connectivity across the Pa Enua," Brown said. "It ensures our communities remain connected, supported and able to participate fully in national development and economic opportunity."
At the ceremony, he officially announced the name of this vessel -- MV Tuitui Moana, which means "threading the ocean."
Wang Xiaolong, Chinese ambassador to New Zealand, the Cook Islands and Niue, said that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the Cook Islands, the two countries have always been good friends and partners characterized by mutual respect, equal treatment and hand-in-hand common development.
This vessel is not only a critical transport link connecting the islands of the Cook Islands, but also a bond that strengthens people-to-people ties between the two sides, and it will inject fresh impetus into China-Cook Islands friendly cooperation, he said.
China stands ready to further deepen cooperation with the Cook Islands in areas including marine development, infrastructure construction and climate governance, and expand sci-tech innovation cooperation in sectors such as photovoltaic new energy and artificial intelligence, to bring greater benefits to both peoples, Wang added. ■
