China and Russia begin live-fire naval exercise in East China Sea

Asia-Pacific, News December 22, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

Naval forces from China and Russia started a week-long live-fire exercise in the East China Sea near Japan on December 21, 2022. The joint naval drills will be held until Tuesday, December 27, 2022.

The naval exercise between two major powers China and Russia focuses on “raising” the level of mutual trust and promoting the establishment of a joint maritime patrol mechanism.

According to a statement released by the Russian Defense Ministry, the two partner countries have stepped up cooperation in an increasingly tense western Pacific. “The active part of the exercise will include joint missile and artillery firing against air targets, artillery firing against sea targets, and practicing joint anti-submarine actions with [the] practical use of weapons,” the Russian statement said.

Spokesperson of the Chinese Navy Senior Captain Gao Xiucheng released a statement about the joint exercise stating that “the series of China-Russia ‘Joint Sea’ exercises have become a stable cooperation platform and communication channel for the two navies to elevate strategic mutual trust, enhance traditional friendship, and improve the capability of joint maritime operations.”

First conducted in 2012, China and Russia have been organizing joint naval exercises in the East China Sea for more than a decade. Chinese naval ships were dispatched from the military port in Zhoushan in eastern Zhejiang province on December 22, while the Russian naval ships departed from Vladivostok port on December 18. The two fleets met in the East China Sea to begin the joint naval drills.

The exercise involves two Chinese navy destroyers Baotou and Jinan, two frigates Binzhou and Yancheng, one supply ship Gaoyouhu, one submarine, fixed-wing early warning aircraft, and anti-submarine patrol aircraft.

*^{Chinese naval fleet assembled for a joint naval exercise in waters of the East China Sea scheduled for December 21 to 27. (Image Credit: CGTN)}*

Russian Navy’s missile cruiser Varyag, frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov, corvettes Aldar Tsydenzhapov and Sovershenny, and supply ship Pechanga are also participating in the joint exercises.

Earlier in September this year, China sent more than 2,000 troops along with more than 300 military vehicles, 21 combat aircraft, and three warships to take part in a sweeping joint exercise with Russia. The Vostok 2022 exercise took place in various locations in Russia’s Far East and the Sea of Japan and involved more than 50,000 troops and 5,000 weapons units, including 140 aircraft and 60 warships.

China and Russia are conducting the naval exercise near Japan at a time when Tokyo is adopting a new national security strategy and putting itself on a more offensive footing. Japan is diverging from its pacifist constitution amid growing threats from regional rivals.

The recently unveiled national security policy indicates that Japan is planning for the largest military build-up since World War II. Japan’s military modernization and offensive security policy are subject to China’s increasing military dominance in the Indo-Pacific region.