China-Russia navy drills show they are willing and able to undermine growing military ties between US, Japan and South Korea, analysts say.
The Chinese navy held back-to-back drills with Russia in the Sea of Japan, or East Sea, earlier this month in what analysts say shows Beijing and Moscow’s growing ability to counter coordination by the US and its allies in the region.
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According to state media, Chinese and Russian forces held the first phase of the “Northern/Interaction-2024” exercise, a joint live-fire naval drill, from September 11 to 15.
A People’s Liberation Army naval fleet, including the guided missile destroyer Xining, visited a military port in the Russian Far East on Wednesday ahead of the second phase of the exercise, which will take place in the Sea of Okhotsk later this month. The two navies will also conduct their fifth joint maritime patrol in the northern Pacific Ocean as part of the drill.
The first phase of the exercise included simulated missile strikes using data from air troops aimed at “examining the tactical command coordination and joint operational capabilities of the two sides”, according to China Military Online.
China’s defence ministry said the drills aimed to “deepen the level of strategic coordination between the Chinese and Russian militaries, and enhance their ability to jointly respond to security threats”.
The PLA also took part in a seven-day joint exercise hosted by Russia, dubbed “Ocean-2024”, that began on September 10.
Spanning the Pacific and Arctic oceans as well as the Mediterranean, Caspian and Baltic seas, more than 400 warships, submarines and support vessels took part in the exercise, as did over 120 planes and helicopters and more than 90,000 troops.
China was the only country to join Russian forces in the drill, sending several PLA warships and 15 aircraft to waters off the Russian Far East in the Sea of Japan, according to the Russian military.
We pay special attention to strengthening military cooperation with friendly states,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said to military officials at the launch of the exercise.
“Today, in the context of growing geopolitical tensions in the world, this is especially important. We see that the United States of America is trying to maintain its global military and political dominance at any cost.”
According to data from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, China and Russia have increased their military exercises over the past decade, holding up to 10 joint drills per year. Before 2014, the two sides held at most four exercises annually, and in some years none.
Including the two most recent drills, China and Russia have held nine joint exercises so far this year. Their other activities included July’s “Joint Sea-2024”, a joint naval exercise in the South China Sea, where Beijing has several territorial and maritime disputes with its Southeast Asian neighbours.
Later that month, Chinese and Russian bombers entered the air defence identification zone over Alaska. The planes were intercepted by American and Canadian fighter jets.
Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said the military drills between China and Russia were “an indication of the significance of the ‘no limits’ partnership between Moscow and Beijing” and showed that these ties were taking on the “characteristics of a military alliance”.
“In undertaking these military exercises, China and Russia are demonstrating to the US, Japan and South Korea, as well as Australia, their willingness and ability to undermine US presence and influence in the region, and hold at risk US and allied forces in a major crisis.”
Stephen Nagy, a visiting fellow at the Japan Institute for International Affairs, said both Beijing and Moscow were “sending a message” to Washington about their ability to escalate cooperation and complicate the strategic position of the US and its allies in the region.
“Russia would like to demonstrate that it can engage in a full-scale war with Ukraine [and] at the same time have a significant presence in the Indo-Pacific,” Nagy said.
“China, on the other hand, would like to demonstrate to the United States that as it continues to strengthen relations with the Philippines, Japan, Australia and other partners in the region, that China can also strengthen its military partnerships with like-minded states like Russia, potentially North Korea, as well as Iran.”
The Chinese navy held back-to-back drills with Russia in the Sea of Japan, or East Sea, earlier this month in what analysts say shows Beijing and Moscow’s growing ability to counter coordination by the US and its allies in the region.
Advertisement
According to state media, Chinese and Russian forces held the first phase of the “Northern/Interaction-2024” exercise, a joint live-fire naval drill, from September 11 to 15.
A People’s Liberation Army naval fleet, including the guided missile destroyer Xining, visited a military port in the Russian Far East on Wednesday ahead of the second phase of the exercise, which will take place in the Sea of Okhotsk later this month. The two navies will also conduct their fifth joint maritime patrol in the northern Pacific Ocean as part of the drill.
The first phase of the exercise included simulated missile strikes using data from air troops aimed at “examining the tactical command coordination and joint operational capabilities of the two sides”, according to China Military Online.
China’s defence ministry said the drills aimed to “deepen the level of strategic coordination between the Chinese and Russian militaries, and enhance their ability to jointly respond to security threats”.
The PLA also took part in a seven-day joint exercise hosted by Russia, dubbed “Ocean-2024”, that began on September 10.
Spanning the Pacific and Arctic oceans as well as the Mediterranean, Caspian and Baltic seas, more than 400 warships, submarines and support vessels took part in the exercise, as did over 120 planes and helicopters and more than 90,000 troops.
China was the only country to join Russian forces in the drill, sending several PLA warships and 15 aircraft to waters off the Russian Far East in the Sea of Japan, according to the Russian military.
We pay special attention to strengthening military cooperation with friendly states,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said to military officials at the launch of the exercise.
“Today, in the context of growing geopolitical tensions in the world, this is especially important. We see that the United States of America is trying to maintain its global military and political dominance at any cost.”
According to data from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, China and Russia have increased their military exercises over the past decade, holding up to 10 joint drills per year. Before 2014, the two sides held at most four exercises annually, and in some years none.
Including the two most recent drills, China and Russia have held nine joint exercises so far this year. Their other activities included July’s “Joint Sea-2024”, a joint naval exercise in the South China Sea, where Beijing has several territorial and maritime disputes with its Southeast Asian neighbours.
Later that month, Chinese and Russian bombers entered the air defence identification zone over Alaska. The planes were intercepted by American and Canadian fighter jets.
Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said the military drills between China and Russia were “an indication of the significance of the ‘no limits’ partnership between Moscow and Beijing” and showed that these ties were taking on the “characteristics of a military alliance”.
“In undertaking these military exercises, China and Russia are demonstrating to the US, Japan and South Korea, as well as Australia, their willingness and ability to undermine US presence and influence in the region, and hold at risk US and allied forces in a major crisis.”
Stephen Nagy, a visiting fellow at the Japan Institute for International Affairs, said both Beijing and Moscow were “sending a message” to Washington about their ability to escalate cooperation and complicate the strategic position of the US and its allies in the region.
“Russia would like to demonstrate that it can engage in a full-scale war with Ukraine [and] at the same time have a significant presence in the Indo-Pacific,” Nagy said.
“China, on the other hand, would like to demonstrate to the United States that as it continues to strengthen relations with the Philippines, Japan, Australia and other partners in the region, that China can also strengthen its military partnerships with like-minded states like Russia, potentially North Korea, as well as Iran.”
