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SHENZHEN (China), May 31 (RIA Novosti) - A former Soviet aircraft carrier was auctioned off Wednesday in the Chinese town of Shenzhen for 128 million yuan ($16 mln).

The Minsk aircraft carrier was sold to the Chinese company Citic Shenzhen, which pledged not to take it outside the limits of the province and expressed the hope that the investment would be profitable.

The heavy cruiser Minsk, designed to engage in anti-submarine and surface warfare, was decommissioned from the Russian Navy in 1993 and sold to a South Korean private company for scrap. In 1994, the aircraft carrier was resold to China as a military museum-piece and amusement park.

The company Minsk World Industries, which operated the aircraft carrier in the town of Shenzhen, was declared bankrupt after failing to repay a loan, following which the heavy cruiser was put up for auction.