MOSCOW: Russian and Chinese warships started a major joint naval exercise in the Sea of Japan on Tuesday as part of “Ocean-2024,” a major maritime drill involving over 400 warships, submarines, and support vessels. The joint naval exercise will see Moscow sail through waters spanning the Northern Hemisphere and Pacific.
The drills, which are scheduled to run until September 16, reflect the deepening military and economic cooperation between Moscow and Beijing. Both nations have been strengthening ties as both countries seek to challenge what they perceive as a United States-dominated global order.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will formally open the exercise, with his spokesman Dmitry Peskov stating that Putin will oversee the drills from a situation center in the Kremlin. The Russian Defense Ministry has detailed that the exercise will also include more than 120 aircraft and helicopters, around 7,000 units of various weapons and military equipment, and over 90,000 personnel.
China has dispatched four warships and a supply vessel to join the Russian fleet in the Sea of Japan. The drills will test the operational readiness of the participating navies and enhance military cooperation with partner countries. The exercise aims to showcase the capabilities of the Russian military and expand its strategic reach.
The wider naval drills will take place in the Pacific and Arctic Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean, Caspian and Baltic Seas, and will become “one of the Russian army’s main operational and combat training events of 2024,” Russian defence ministry added.
The Japanese Defense Ministry reported observing five Chinese naval vessels entering the Sea of Japan over the weekend, moving northeast through the Tsushima Strait. This strait, situated between South Korea and Japan, connects the South China Sea with the Sea of Japan and is not within Japanese territorial waters.
Japan’s Self-Defence Forces have been actively monitoring and gathering intelligence on the movement of these vessels, deploying a vessel and a patrol plane for vigilance.
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The joint exercise is taking place amid rising regional tensions. China’s increasing military assertiveness and its recent confrontations with the Philippines have alarmed the United States and its allies. The strengthening of military cooperation between Russia and China, combined with their mutual opposition to what they view as Western hegemony, further complicates the geopolitical landscape.
On August 26, Japan scrambled fighter jets in response to the first confirmed incursion by a Chinese military aircraft into its airspace. Additionally, Japan recently protested a Chinese naval vessel entering its territorial waters.
Relations between Japan and Russia have been strained due to ongoing disputes over the Kuril Islands, known in Japan as the Northern Territories, and deteriorated further following the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict.
Moreover, tensions between Japan and China have been exacerbated by frequent maritime incidents near the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea, known as the Diaoyus in China. Japan has reported several encounters involving Chinese coastguard vessels, naval ships, and even a nuclear-powered submarine in these contested waters.
Japan’s Defense Ministry has requested a record 8.5 trillion yen ($59 billion) for the next fiscal year as part of its five-year, 43-trillion-yen defence buildup plan through March 2028.
