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| PLA Navy ships on patrol in the East China Sea (File Photo) |
There are four main reasons China and Russia have decided to conduct a joint naval drill in the Mediterranean, writes the Beijing-based Sina Military Network.
Set to begin next week, the exercise marks the first time China and Russia will conduct a joint drill in that part of the world. The two countries have been holding naval drills in Pacific waters since 2012.
"The aim [of the drills] is to deepen both countries' friendly and practical cooperation and increase our navies' ability to jointly deal with maritime security threats," Chinese defense ministry spokesperson Geng Yansheng said at a monthly news briefing. "These exercises are not aimed at any third party and have nothing to do with the regional situation."
Despite this public declaration, there is no doubt that joint military drills will always send a signal, Sina Military said. For instance, US-Japan drills in the East China Sea and US-Philippines drills in the South China Sea are surely aimed at China due to the territorial disputes in those regions. US-South Korea drills, on the other hand, are clearly aimed at North Korea.
Read the full story at Want China Times