Russian Federation and China held the first stage of the Joint Sea naval drills in the Mediterranean Sea in mid-May.
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“A source close to the operation said navies of the two countries will join forces to simulate anti-submarine combat and air defense and other relevant missions”.
Seven Chinese warships have left East China’s port of Qingdao for the Sea of Japan.
The Chinese side will be represented by the Shengyang and Taizhou destroyers, the Linyi and Hengyang frigates, Changbaishan and Yunwushan amphibious ships, as well as the Taihu support ship. “A joint beach landing of troops is also planned”, a report in a Chinese state-controlled Xinhua news service read.
Global naval drills by the Russian and Chinese navies will be conducted in the Sea of Japan next week.
“We also expressed concern over U.S. attempts to strengthen its military and political clout in the [Asia-Pacific Region]”.
The Russians and the Chinese have responded by strengthening their military deterrence, which includes Moscow’s move to alter its naval doctrine, and Beijing’s focus on staging naval manoeuvres in the Pacific, including the troubled South China Sea.
Explaining the decision to hold the drills, the Chinese Defense Ministry said that they are meant to “bolster the comprehensive strategic cooperation and partnership between Russian Federation and China, and to increase the military capabilities of both countries to counter maritime threats”. Released last month, Russia’s updated doctrine makes its military partnership with China the cornerstone of its naval strategy in the Pacific.
In the last several years China and Russian Federation have worked closer together through naval exercises that gave grown in size and complexity. A commentary on Saturday in the People’s Daily, the government’s official newspaper, accused Mr. Abe of “dodging” his own apology for imperial Japan’s role in World War II.
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Because of the growing strength of ties between Tokyo and Washington, “Japan may miss the boat in connection with the vast Eurasian infrastructural developments, including high-speed rail connections across Siberia linking Chinese coastal cities directly with ports in Europe (which promises to become the heaviest traveled trade route in history)”, The Japan Times states in an article published on Saturday, the day the Chinese navy dispatched its ships to Russian Federation.
