The Chinese military will take part in the Vostok-2022 strategic command and staff exercises in Russia.

This was reported in the Ministry of Defense of China.

“According to the annual plan of cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries and the agreements of the parties, the PLA (People’s Liberation Army of China. -

RT

) will soon allocate and send part of the forces to Russia to participate in the Vostok-2022 exercises,” the department said.

The PRC sends its representatives to these exercises in order to "deepen pragmatic friendly cooperation with the armed forces of the participating countries, increase the level of strategic interaction with them, strengthen the ability to respond to various security threats," the Chinese defense ministry said.

In addition to Russia and China, military personnel from Belarus, India, Tajikistan and Mongolia will also take part in the Vostok-2022 exercises.

The Russian Defense Ministry previously announced that the Vostok-2022 strategic exercises will be held from August 30 to September 5 at 13 training grounds of the Eastern Military District.

The maneuvers will be led by Chief of the General Staff of the RF Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov.

“During the exercises, issues of using groupings of troops (forces) to ensure military security in the Eastern Region will be worked out.

In addition to the troops (forces) of the Eastern Military District, part of the forces of the airborne troops, long-range aviation and military transport aviation, as well as military contingents of other states, will be involved in these maneuvers.

Strengthening cooperation

Over the past few years, Russia and China have significantly increased military cooperation, including in the field of joint military exercises and maneuvers.

For example, in 2016 and 2017, Russia and China conducted joint exercises "Marine Interaction".

In 2018, the Chinese military took part in the Vostok-2018 exercises in the Far East and the adjacent Pacific Ocean.

In these maneuvers, for the first time in the history of bilateral military relations between the Russian Federation and the PRC, an entire motorized rifle brigade of the People's Liberation Army of China was involved, which indicated the actions of the Chinese combined arms army.

  • Military personnel of China and Russia

  • RIA News

  • © Alexander Kondratyuk

The very next year, China sent 1,600 military personnel and more than 300 pieces of equipment to the Center-2019 strategic command and staff exercises, which took place in the Orenburg region.

The Chinese military also took part in the Kavkaz-2020 strategic exercises.

The ministries of defense of the Russian Federation and China noted that these events are aimed at strengthening comprehensive strategic interaction and partnership and deepening practical cooperation in the military sphere.

At the same time, Beijing and Moscow have repeatedly stressed that the exchange of military experience between the Russian Federation and China is not directed against third countries.

In May of this year, Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui noted that in recent years, China and the Russian Federation have achieved "significant results" in the field of military-technical cooperation, and it "continues to develop progressively."

"Chinese-Russian military-technical cooperation is in the fundamental interests of both sides, is carried out on the basis of the principle of mutual benefit, is not directed against a third party, promotes regional stability and development, and is also an important guarantor of international strategic balance and world peace," he stressed. diplomat in an interview with TASS.

Zhang Hanhui added that Beijing attaches great importance to cooperation with Russia in this field and "will work with the Russian side to promote military-technical cooperation at a higher level and on a larger scale."

In turn, Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe, speaking with a video message at the X Moscow Conference on International Security, called China's relations with Russia a model of interaction between two major powers.

“China and Russia are a model of cooperation without forming blocs, and also without forcing confrontation ... Beijing and Moscow are constantly strengthening mutual trust, contributing to the development of our bilateral strategic relations at an even higher level,” he said.

Geopolitical context

China has been regularly participating in military exercises in Russia over the past few years, Alexander Lukin, scientific director of the Institute of China and Modern Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences, recalled.

“Chinese participation is intensifying, and the number of Chinese units in these exercises is constantly increasing.

This indicates that cooperation between Russia and China in the military field is growing, moving towards even closer relations.

This is due to the actions of the United States, which are pursuing a hostile policy towards Russia and China, ”the expert emphasized in an interview with RT.

  • Chinese soldier

  • RIA News

  • © Alexander Kondratyuk

Alexander Lukin noted that the strengthening of military cooperation suggests that Moscow and Beijing understand that the threats to them come from the same countries.

“So they coordinate their actions.

As for the practical significance of these exercises, within their framework, Russia and China pass on military experience to each other and become more combat-ready, ”the political scientist explained.

The strategic command and staff exercises of the Russian Federation with the participation of the Chinese military are a signal to Western countries that Beijing and Moscow are ready to jointly respond to changes in the military-political situation in Asia, Alexander Lukin emphasized.

“Now a situation is emerging in which there is a polarization of world powers and two opposing world camps are being created, including in the Asia-Pacific region.

On the one hand, these are the United States and its allies, the new organization AUKUS, South Korea and especially Japan, on the other hand, an alliance is being formed between Russia and China, ”the expert said.

The US State Department has already commented on the upcoming Vostok-2022 maneuvers with the participation of China.

State Department spokesman Ned Price said that Washington considers these exercises to be routine.

In an interview with RT, Associate Professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, RIAC expert Dmitry Yezhov noted that China is a strategic partner of the Russian Federation in the military sphere, so the participation of the Chinese military in exercises in eastern Russia is not an exceptional case.

However, this interaction takes on a special meaning in the current military-political situation in the world, the RT interlocutor added.

“These exercises are quite important, especially in the context of geopolitical confrontation and hybrid war waged against Russia (and not only against it) by the collective West.

In this case, we are witnessing the coordination of efforts in opposition to this collective West.

The coordination of forces between the Russian Federation and China is also a kind of counterbalance to the NATO bloc,” Dmitry Yezhov emphasized.

Recall that the North Atlantic Alliance at the summit in Madrid at the end of June adopted a new strategic concept, which states that China's actions pose a challenge to the interests and security of the countries of the alliance.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry, in turn, said that the new NATO strategic concept "denigrates China's foreign policy, makes irresponsible remarks about China's normal military development and national defense policy."

Dmitry Yezhov believes that the United States and its allies will react negatively to new joint Russian-Chinese exercises.

“The United States is very sensitive to such signals.

They will claim that Russia, together with China, is allegedly creating an additional escalation in an unstable international situation, and so on.

But the purpose of these exercises is different - first of all, to secure their borders and borders and create a certain springboard for ensuring the security of the Russian Federation and China in the future, ”concluded the expert.