On July 3, the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy hospital ship "Peace Ark" set sail for five Pacific Island countries to offer humanitarian medical services. The 14,300-metric-tonne professional hospital ship, painted white with red crosses, set sail from Zhoushan City in east China's Zhejiang Province for Kiribati, Tonga, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands and East Timor during its Harmonious Mission 2023 operation. Aboard the hospital ship are 126 medical workers, mostly from a naval medical university, and an onboard medevac helicopter for emergencies.