China Announces Military Drills in Russia
China said it will send troops to Russia to conduct joint military drills “soon” to increase “friendly cooperation,” in a statement from the Chinese Ministry of National Defense.
“According to the annual cooperation plan between the Chinese and Russian militaries and the consensus of the two sides, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army will soon send some troops to Russia to participate in the ‘Eastern-2022’ exercise,” the statement read.
China also participated in the exercise program in 2018.
“India, Belarus, Tajikistan, Mongolia and other countries will also participate in the performance,” the statement added.
Russia’s defense ministry announced in July it would send troops to the “Vostok” (East) exercises which will take place August 30-September 5, despite its heavy losses in Ukraine.
“We draw your attention to the fact that only a part of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation is involved in the special military operation (in Ukraine), the number of which is quite sufficient to fulfill all the tasks set by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief,” the defense ministry said, according to Reuters.
The military drills come as tensions continue to flare between the U.S. and China over Taiwan after the U.S. sent two Congressional delegations to the island.
Russia and China announced a “no limits” partnership on February 4. The two countries have deepened their bilateral relations since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, with China refusing to sanction Russia and condemn the war.
Russian president Vladimir Putin called Xi Jinping the day after Russia’s invasion, expressing “Russia’s willingness to have high-level negotiation with Ukraine.”
The military exercises are aimed to “deepen pragmatic and friendly cooperation with the armies of participating countries, improve the level of strategic cooperation among all parties participating in the exercise, and enhance their ability to deal with various security threats,” the statement continued, claiming that they have “nothing to do with the current international and regional situation.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he told Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in July that he was “concerned” about China’s alignment with Russia.
The U.S. has warned China of consequences if Beijing would send economic aid to Russia.
