PORT KLANG: Two South Korean naval vessels -- Dae Jo Yeong and Chun Ji -- are in town on a goodwill visit.

The 5,500-tonne destroyer and 9,000-tonne logistical support ship are part of the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) Cruise Training Force on working visits to 15 ports of call.

The cruise is part of the training for the 120 soon-to-be-commissioned Naval Aca-demy midshipmen on board to acquire practical naval technical knowledge and to adapt to a real-life naval environment.

The crew held a military band performance and taekwondo demonstration at Da-taran Merdeka here yesterday.

ROKN Cruise Training Force commander Rear Admiral Yoon Young-sik hoped the visit would help increase military cooperation between the two countries.
"Malaysia is our sixth largest training partner and every year, we hold navy-to-navy talks to discuss regional peace and how to improve relations between the two navies," he told a press conference.

Also present yesterday was South Korea's ambassador to Malaysia Bong Ryull.

This is the ROKN Cruise Training Force's 18th visit to Malaysia since its first visit in 1963.

The last time it docked in Malaysian waters was in 2003.

The Chun Ji also has on board the Korea Defence Industry Exhibit to showcase Korea's shipbuilding and defence industries technologies.

The Cruise Training Force set sail from Busan, Korea, on Aug 25 and will be travelling until Dec 24, covering 24,328 nautical miles.

The two ships will depart for the next port of call in Jakarta and later to its final stop in Vietnam after a joint exercise with the Malaysian navy tomorrow.