Ships from eight countries kicked off a multinational maritime exercise Wednesday, the 65th anniversary of the founding of the PLA navy. These ships, including the Chinese frigate Yantai, drew large crowds at the No.3 Pier of East China's port city Qingdao on Tuesday when they were opened for public viewing on a temporary open day. 

A myriad of citizens waited in queues on early Tuesday morning. They were immensely excited to be allowed to go on board the ships. I was invited by the China-built Pakistan ship Shamsheer for an onboard tour, where I saw curiosity from jubilant kids, military fans and mostly ordinary local citizens.

A Pakistan soldier estimated they received over 1,500 visitors during a three-hour open time. As cheerful as the visitors were, they complained that there are not enough such chances for the public to learn more about the Chinese military.

A mother surnamed Chen who took her 5-year-old son to visit the ships told me that even in the port city of Qingdao where varied navy ships are moored, people have rare opportunities to view the ships. The last time she took a close look at Chinese warships was five years ago when the PLA Navy celebrated its 60th anniversary.

China will open some warships on active service to the public when there are major anniversaries, just as other countries including the US do. However, there has been growing public thirst to probe Chinese military with the nation's power quickly rising in recent years. The more you feel proud of it, the more you want to know about it.

More than a few ship visitors interviewed in Qingdao expressed their eagerness to see China's aircraft carrier Liaoning. US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel's carrier tour earlier this month, hailed as a potent symbol that China is greatly open in displaying its military strength, lightened rounds of public discussion about whether China could establish an open day for the public to appreciate the carrier's grandeur and have close contact with the crew members.

Whether confidentiality is a problem is the key contentious point. Military confidentiality is an eternal topic especially for those relatively weak nations.

China's military strength, although it has rapidly developed in recent years, still witnessed a certain gap with some superior military powers such as the US.

The US has 10 carriers and nine ships that would be designated as carriers in most other navies and transformed some of its retired carriers for public reviewing. But the Liaoning was commissioned into the PLA navy in 2012 and is its sole aircraft carrier. 

The Liaoning as a training ship also needs to carry out a lot of work for teaching sailors and pilots the necessary skills. Whether the time is ripe to open the carrier to the public needs to be further discussed.

In front of the growing public demand for more information about warships and other military equipment, the military needs to offer more opportunities for the public to interact with them and enrich military knowledge.

Meanwhile, Chinese military opening to intensify interaction with the public also calls the public to prepare themselves with necessary knowledge.

Ordinary citizens are quite unprofessional when visiting warships. On the Pakistan frigate in Qingdao, a mother and her son trying to climb up to the top of the ship were stopped by a crew member due to safety concerns, as the radar radiation at the top is harmful to human health.

The Liaoning is more sophisticated than the frigates. It could be open to the public someday, but at that time, the public needs to know how they should behave when they get on board the carrier.

The author is a reporter with the Global Times. yujincui@globaltimes.com.cn