摘要
By January 7, the Chinese icebreaker Xuelong （Snow Dragon） had been making preparations to free itself for days, warming up its engine and creating an ＂ice-breaking runway＂ for itself by sailing back and forth while waiting for a favorable westward wind. The vessel had been trapped since January 3, after its mission to rescue 52 passengers on board a stranded Russian ship. The edge of the massive expanse of ice,
Xuelong’s rescue of a Russian ship proves the country is a responsible globalplayer By January 7,the Chinese icebreaker Xuelong(Snow Dragon)had been making preparations to free itself for days,warming up its engine and creating an"ice-breaking runway"for itself by sailing back and forth while waiting for a favorable westward wind.The vessel had been trapped since January 3,after its mission to rescue52 passengers on board a stranded Russian ship.The edge of the massive expanse of ice,had begun to loosen,and some small openings had begun to appear.At 18:30 Beijing time on January 7,Xuelong broke through the ice surrounding it and successfully made it back out into open water.
