China announces that it will participate in joint military exercises with Russia

Chinese Ministry of Defense The Chinese People’s Liberation Army will take part in military exercises with the Russian armed forces in Russia’s Far East, it was announced Wednesday.

“According to the annual cooperation plan between the armed forces of the two countries and the agreements of the two parties, the People’s Liberation Army will soon allocate and send part of the forces to Russia to participate in the Vostok 2022 exercises,” the Chinese Defense Ministry said. He said in a statement.

The “Vostok” exercises represent an opportunity for China and Russia to cooperate militarily in this light Russian invasion of Ukraine Possible Chinese action against Taiwan.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the exercises will include “13 training grounds in the Eastern Military District, and troops from the Airborne Forces, long-range military transport aviation, as well as foreign military personnel will participate.”

China has been a reliable buyer of Russian military equipment since the 1990s, with sales to China accounting for 25-50% of Russian foreign military sales. Relations between the two countries It has been tense at times as Russia in the past accused the Chinese of intellectual property theft, but even with these disagreements, the two sides came close and joint military exercises continued.

Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a symposium at China’s Renmin University in Beijing, China, on April 25, 2022.
(Ju Peng/Xinhua via Getty Images)

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Strategic intelligence expert Rebecca Kofler told Fox News Digital, “Although these military exercises are part of the annual bilateral Russia-China training cycle, the fact that Putin has decided to stick to the schedule even while his forces are in mid period Active conflict in Ukraine unable.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, pledges to enhance Russia’s military cooperation with its allies during the Army 2022 International Military and Technical Forum at Patriot Park, outside Moscow, Russia, on August 15, 2022.
(Sputnik, Kremlin Pond image via Associated Press)

“The relationship between Russia and China, under the leadership of fellow autocrats Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, is closer than at any time since the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” Kofler, a former CIA intelligence officer, told Fox News Digital.

A Chinese Air Force pilot takes part in a combat exercise near Taiwan on August 7, 2022 (Wang Xinchao / Xinhua via AP)

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You see both Russia and China The United States as their main opponent And they are taking a stand to challenge the U.S. show of power in the East as tensions between the United States and China escalate over Taiwan.”

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The last Vostok military exercises were held in 2018 and were joined by Mongolia and China, the first time that countries outside the former Soviet bloc have participated. Approximately 300,000 soldiers participated as well as 36,000 vehicles, 1,000 aircraft, and 80 warships, the largest since the days of the Soviet Union.

The exercises are expected to take place between August 30 and September 5. Other participating countries include India, Belarus and Tajikistan.