China announced Monday that its military will be participating in the Pacific portion of a massive exercise being conducted by the Russian armed forces amid increasing economic and security ties between the two countries.
A spokesperson for the Chinese defense ministry said that its navy and air force will be involved in joint maneuvers with Russia in the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk during operation "Ocean-2024,” which started Tuesday.
The global training event is set to take place in the Pacific and Arctic Oceans as well as the Baltic, Caspian, and Mediterranean Seas.
Officials in Moscow have claimed that they will be deploying more than 400 naval vessels, 120 aircraft, 7,000 weapons units, and over 90,000 personnel in what the Kremlin describes as "one of the main events of the operational and combat training of the Russian Armed Forces in 2024."
At least 15 nations were reportedly invited to observe the drills that are scheduled to run until September 16.
