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New Zealand-led military force praised for averted disaster

Xinhua, September 25, 2015 Adjust font size:

Cook Islands leaders have praised the work of New Zealand-led multinational force, including Chinese, British and U.S. personnel, in rebuilding the Pacific nation's infrastructure, the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) said Friday.

Cook Islands Deputy Prime Minister Teariki Heather said the relocation and upgrading of a critical fuel depot as part of Exercise Tropic Twilight had helped avert a potential environmental disaster.

There had been safety and environmental concerns with the old fuel depot in the northern atoll of Penrhyn, Heather said in a statement from the NZDF.

"As a result of conducting the exercise and the relocation of the fuel depot further inland, those concerns have now been addressed, particularly in respect of the lagoon and its environment," he said.

Police Commissioner Maara Tetava said the project ensured the Penrhyn community was better protected from the unlikely event of an oil spill from the fuel depot.

"The new fuel depot will also support long-range maritime patrols against illegal fishing in the northern Cook Islands," Tetava said in the statement.

"Most importantly, we have sufficient fuel in storage to allow us to progress our maritime surveillance and enforcement activities and to respond to disaster and other events in the northern Cooks," said Tetava.

The Australian-funded Cook Islands Pacific Patrol Boat, Te Kukupa, undertakes long-range maritime surveillance patrols in the northern atolls, where most illegal fishing occurs.

Tropic Twilight is a recurring activity that is being conducted this year in the northern Cook Islands atolls of Penrhyn and Manihiki from Aug. 31 to Oct. 12.

Around 40 NZDF engineers, plumbers, carpenters and electricians are working alongside 20 military engineers from Britain, the United States and -- for the first time -- China to repair schools and clinics in the northern atolls.

The personnel from China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) were happy with the improvements they had completed to help the local people, PLA Captain Wang Zhongrui said in a video released by the NZDF on Friday,

"The exercise offers us a very good opportunity and very good experience to work with different nations, to get more understanding with each other about how to do humanitarian assistance disaster relief operations," said Wang. Endi