After successfully taking part in the Indian Navy’s International Fleet Review and Exercise MILAN last month, the South African Navy’s Valour class frigate SAS Amatola has arrived in China for a five-day visit.
The vessel docked in Shanghai on 15 March, marking the first visit of the SAS Amatola to Shanghai and also the first visit to China by a South African naval vessel since 2008.
During the visit, South African sailors and their Chinese counterparts will carry out a series of activities including cross-deck visits, professional exchanges, and friendly sports games. They will exchange and share views on maritime security, professional cooperation, joint training and exercises, and other fields, aiming to deepen pragmatic cooperation and enhance consensus and friendship between the two sides, China’s Ministry of Defence said.
Photo: China MoD
It added that in January, the SAS Amatola participated in the joint maritime exercise Will for Peace 2026 together with Chinese, Russian, and Iranian naval vessels off the Western Cape.
The SAS Amatola left Simons Town on 25 January, arriving in Visakhapatnam, India, in time to take part in that country’s International Fleet Review on 18 February. This was followed by Exercise MILAN 2026, carried out at Visakhapatnam and in the waters of the Bay of Bengal. South African Navy activities in India also saw participation by the Chief of the South African Navy, Vice Admiral Monde Lobese, in the Conclave of Chiefs of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), convened in Visakhapatnam.
Photo: China MoD
SAS Amatola’s visit to China is the second by a Valour class frigate after the SAS Spioenkop conducted a three-month, six-country visit to the Far East in 2008. Spioenkop visited Singapore, China, Malaysia, and Vietnam in October that year, and India and Mauritius in November. The ship conducted naval exercises with the Singaporean Navy, the People’s Liberation Army Navy of the People’s Republic of China, the Indian Navy and the Mauritian Coast Guard.
SAS Amatola is expected to arrive home at the beginning of May. The vessel will make stops in Malaysia, Kenya, and Tanzania on her homeward voyage.
Photo: China MoD
The SAS Amatola’s transoceanic voyage is the first by a South African Navy vessel in almost a decade. “The deployment of SAS Amatola follows a period in which public discourse highlighted challenges relating to funding constraints and sea-going opportunities. Against this backdrop, the successful arrival and participation in the International Fleet Review stand as a practical demonstration of operational readiness and institutional resilience,” the SA Navy said.
“SAS Amatola continues to fly the South African flag abroad and strengthen international partnerships, demonstrating the South African Navy’s enduring commitment to maritime cooperation,” the SA Navy concluded.
