Nine-day voyage comes just weeks after a US research ship conducts its own survey in the region.

China and the Cook Islands have wrapped up their first joint scientific expedition in the South Pacific, a region emerging as a focal point in the geopolitical race for rare earths. The 4,000-tonne Chinese marine research vessel Da Yang Hao, one of the most advanced in China, docked at the Avatiu port near the capital Avarua on Saturday, about one month after a US research ship conducted a three-week survey in the region. Welcoming the Da Yang Hao to port, Sun Shuxian, the Chinese vice-minister…

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