China and Russia on Friday started joint naval drills off the coast of Russia's Far East.

 

　　Seven vessels from China's North Sea Fleet and South Sea Fleet and 12 vessels from Russia's Pacific Fleet are taking part in the weeklong exercises.

 

　　Participating forces also include fixed-wing aircraft, carrier-based helicopters and special operations detachments.

 

　　A total of 19-vessels, eight planes and two teams of special forces from the two countries will participate in the exercises.

 

　　The maneuvers will focus on joint maritime air defense, joint escorts and marine search and anti-submarine exercises.

 

　　Military expert Yin Zhuo.

 

　　"Anti-submarine skills are usually not shared with other countries except for allies. So it's really important that Russia is conducting anti-submarine drills with Chinese navies this time. For example, the US only carries out such drills with Japan and South Korea among its Asian allies. China and Russia are not allies, but we are doing the drill anyway. This means we have reached a high level of mutual trust."

 

　　The drill is aimed at enhancing the two navies' capability in tackling common challenges.

 

　　Zhang Junshe is with the Naval Military Studies Research Institute.

 

　　"Compared to joint exercises by other Asian countries, the China Russia one is on a smaller scale, and it is not offensive in nature. For example, it does not include an island defense drill like some country had in the drills. I want to point out that China is still committed to solve the territorial disputes with neighboring countries through dialogue."

 

　　The upcoming drill between China and Russia is believed to be one of the largest joint military maneuvers in the region.

 

　　Last year, the two navies conducted a joint drill in the Yellow Sea.