Kharg entered the Suez Canal on 22 February 2011, with the frigate Alvand, on a deployment reported to be a training mission to Latakia, Syria.[32][33] While docked at Latakia, a new cooperation agreement between Iran and Syria was signed aboard Kharg.[3] The two ships, compromising the 12th naval group, were on a mission from 27 January until they returned home on 21 March 2011, and in the Red Sea they saved a Hong Kong merchant vessel from Somali pirates.[4]