Chinese characters “Zuguo Wansui” meaning “Long Live the Motherland” are seen on the main deck of the Hong Kong-flagged merchant vessel “Hebei Eagle,” escorted by the Chinese fleet, when it sailed across the waters off Somalia, January 7, 2008. A Chinese naval fleet sails into the Gulf of Aden off Somalia earlier this week, starting a three-month mission to protect passing ships against pirates. [Xinhua]