Russia and China’s naval forces have begun joint military drills – days after NATO allies accused Beijing of being an enabler of the war in Ukraine.
The exercise, which began in Guangdong province on Sunday and is expected to last until the middle of the month, aimed to demonstrate the capabilities of the two countries’ navies in addressing security threats, CCTV reported.
China’s state broadcaster said the drills include anti-missile exercises, sea strikes, and air defence measures. Xinhua News Agency reported that Chinese and Russian naval forces carried out on-map military simulation and tactical coordination exercises after an opening ceremony in the city of Zhanjiang.
News of the joint drills come amid mounting tensions between China and the NATO military alliance. A sternly worded final communiqué, approved by the 32 NATO members at their summit in Washington, identified China as a burgeoning focus for the military alliance, with Beijing called a “decisive enabler” of Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The European and North American members and their partners in the Indo-Pacific increasingly see shared security concerns coming from Russia and its Asian supporters, especially China.
In response, Beijing accused NATO of seeking security at others’ expense, warning the alliance not to bring the same “chaos” to Asia. China’s foreign ministry has insisted the Asian giant has a fair and objective stance on the war in Ukraine.
The United States recently renewed its call on China to stop its aggressive actions in the South China Sea, saying a broader web of security alliances has emerged to preserve the rule of law in the disputed waters.
Washington’s top diplomat in Manila was joined by counterparts from key Western and Asian allies, including Japan and Australia, in a forum to express alarm over increasing hostilities in the South China Sea, particularly between China and the Philippines. They committed to help defend a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific region.
The worst confrontation so far saw Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears, and an axe on motorboats repeatedly ram and destroy two Philippine navy supply vessels on June 17 in a chaotic faceoff at the disputed Second Thomas Shoal. Filipino sailors were injured and seven Philippine navy rifles were seized in an incident Beijing and Manila blamed on each other.
News of China and Russia’s military drills come in the same week the British Government announced a defence review, to be led by former NATO chief, Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, who warned the West faces a “deadly quartet” of Russia, China, Iran and North Korea.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has relied on supplies from those countries to wage his war in Ukraine, with Iranian drones, North Korean munitions and Chinese components sustaining his ability to attack despite Western sanctions.
Lord Robertson told reporters: “We’re confronted by a deadly quartet of nations increasingly working together, and we in this country, and the NATO alliance that met so successfully last week, has got to be able to confront that particular quartet as well as the other problems that are pervading the world at the present moment.”
Meanwhile, Russia’s foreign minister has accused the United States of holding the West “at gunpoint” and impeding international cooperation, a claim the US ambassador to the United Nations denounced as “hypocrisy”.
Sergei Lavrov attacked NATO’s “reckless expansion” in Europe despite repeated warnings from Moscow, claiming the “special military operation” in Ukraine was launched to eliminate threats to Russia’s security.
Russia’s top diplomat accused Washington of doing everything possible “to blow up” the global order “to contain Russia, China and other countries” whose independent policies are seen as a challenge to the United State’s global dominance.
Britain’s UN Ambassador, Barbara Woodward, told Lavrov: “While you tell us how you believe the world order can become more just, democratic and sustainable, your military is systematically bombing civilians in Ukraine in an unprovoked war of aggression, and in flagrant violation of the UN Charter.”
Under Article 51 of the UN Charter, a country only has the right to go to war in self-defence. The UK’s UN ambassador said more countries are engaged in conflict than at any time since World War II.
She said the invasion of Ukraine was “a stark reminder of what kind of world order Russia really wants… a world where might is right and powerful countries can bully and invade others with impunity.”
