CHIEF of Staff (COS), Commodore Gary Best and a delegation from the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) paid an official visit to the People’s Republic of China from June 25 to July 6, an Army release disclosed. The release said fruitful discussions were held with the Chinese and the high point was a meeting with General Chen Bingde, Chief of General Staff of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China.
It said a number of agreements were cemented, through which China will continue to provide military assistance to the GDF under a five-year joint training cycle.
The release said, as a consequence, the China National Aero-Technology Import and Export Corporation (CATIC) will train command and instructor pilots and engineers of the GDF-Y12 aircraft, locally, to boost the ability to maintain the plane.
Additionally, CATIC will be bear the cost of upgrading the Y-12, which now has an upgrade kit that would enable it to do maritime surveillance in Guyana’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
The PLA will also send a team to train members of the GDF Band Corps in music and all the agreements will be realised through direct liaison with the Chinese Embassy in Georgetown.
The GDF contingent, while in China, visited the First Solares Coy Limited, a solar water heating business that supplies the Chinese armed forces; the PLA Navy Command College; the Third Guard Division of the Beijing Military Region and CATIC, the dealer in defence aviation products.
The Guyanese were also privileged to see several places of cultural and historical importance and the release said the occasion presented another opportunity to further strengthen the bilateral relationship between the PLA and the GDF and explore future opportunities for training and military assistance.