EGYPT launched its second domestically built Gowind-class corvette in a ceremony attended by the Chief-of-Staff Lieutenant-General Mohamed Farid, military commanders, shipbuilders and engineers from the Alexandria Shipyard Company, reports Ahmed Eleiba. The El Moez is the third of four Gowind-class corvettes ordered from France as part of a military cooperation/technology transfer agreement with France's Naval Group. The first vessel, El Fateh, was built in France and delivered in September 2017. The second, Port Said, was built locally and entered into service in September 2018. The 103 metre El Moez is the third such frigate to join Egypt's fleet. It has a range of 4,000 nautical miles at speeds of up to 25 knots. Speaking at the ceremony Rear Admiral Osama Fathi Ahmed, chairman of the Alexandria Shipyard Company, said shipbuilding facilities had been upgraded in line with the latest international developments in the field. Janina Herrera, French consul-general in Alexandria, said cooperation over building the vessels had strengthened the French-Egyptian strategic partnership. She lauded the outstanding skills and of the engineers and workers at the Alexandria Shipyard Company. Commander of the Egyptian Navy Vice Admiral Ahmed Khaled underscored the Navy's vital role in national defence. “Personnel from the Navy and the northern military zone, with the latest weapons, equipment and ships in their possession, exercise their duties safeguarding Egypt's borders and territorial waters against any external or internal hostile act with determination.” Farid met with Navy and Northern Military Zone servicemen, members of the educational staff and students of the Navy and Air Force colleges, and broke the Ramadan fast with them. The meeting opened with a minute's silence in commemoration of soldiers who sacrificed their lives in defence of Egypt's safety and security.