China to send navy to fight Somali pirates

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Military sources say this would be the first time for the country's navy to carry out escorting missions outside Chinese waters. They also say this mission is in line with related UN resolutions on combating pirates off the Somali coast.

Liu Jianchao noted that in the first 11 months of this year, over 1,200 Chinese ships have passed through the troubled sea area. That's an average of three to four a day.

He said about 20 percent of them have come under attack by pirates.

In 2008,there have been seven cases of pirate attacks involving Chinese ships or crews. He also said that one Chinese fishing boat along with 18 crew members were still being held by pirates.

The latest incident occurred on Wednesday when a group of armed pirates boarded a Chinese cargo ship sailing in the Gulf of Aden.

In the latest piracy attempt the crew of the Zhenhua 4 was rescued after a five-hour ordeal with the help of an international anti-piracy force.

Editor:Zhang Ning