On August 15, 2018, accompanied by His Excellency Wang Baodong, Chinese Ambassador to the Kingdom of Tonga, Honorable Akilisi Pohiva, Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Tonga inspected the Chinese Naval Hospital Ship Ark Peace. He expressed appreciation to the Chinese government and people for their unselfish assistance rendered to the Tongan people on behalf of the King, the Government and people of Tonga.

Prime Minister Pohiva reviewed the guards of honor, visited the medical facilities, carefully asked the ongoing medical services and visited the medical staff and the local patients onboard Ark Peace.

Prime Minister Pohiva said that the visit onboard the medical ship surprised his and all the Cabinet Ministers. The equipment and medical facilities onboard are very advanced and the doctors’ skills are fairly exquisite. More importantly, they are all deeply impressed by Ark Peace’s spirit of humanitarianism. Prime Minister Pohiva said that on the occasion of jointly celebrating the 20th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Tonga and China, Ark Peace’s visit has displayed and deepened the profound friendship between the two countries and the two peoples. He wished that the bilateral Strategic Partnership could continuously achieve new development.

Previously, Commanders of Mission Harmony 2018 separately paid courtesy calls on Honorable Prime Mnister Pohiva, Saia Piukala, Minister of Health and Public Enterprises, Honorable Lord Ma’afu, Minister of Land, Natural Resources and Minister for His Majesty’s Armed Forces (HMAF), and Honorable Lord Brigadier Fielakepa, Chief of Defense Staff of HMAF, who expressed sincere appreciations for China’s unselfish assistance on behalf of the Government, HMAF and people of Tonga.