Russia, China naval forces to carry out joint Asia Pacific patrol: Report
Citing a statement on Wednesday from the Russian Pacific Fleet's press service, Interfax said that ships from the Russian Navy and China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy 'will form a new task group to carry out joint patrol missions in the Asia-Pacific region'.
'After replenishing supplies from logistics vessels, the crews of the Russian Navy and the PLA Navy will form a new detachment to carry out joint patrol tasks in the Asia-Pacific region,' the news agency said.
Russia is conducting a series of military exercises with China in response to the build-up of US military potential in the Asia Pacific region, Interfax said, citing Russia's chief of staff, Valery Gerasimov, in 2022.
Moscow and Beijing have already conducted joint air patrols in the Asia Pacific region since 2019, it added.
The joint patrol announcement comes as the two countries conclude five days of joint naval drills in the Sea of Japan that focused on anti-submarine and air defence missions.
During the final phase of the exercises, Russia's large anti-submarine ship Admiral Tributs and the corvette Gromky, together with the Chinese destroyers Shaoxing and Urumqi, carried out live-fire drills while crews practised searching for and neutralising a mock enemy submarine, Interfax reported.
Russia's Pacific Fleet earlier said that the drills were defensive in nature and not directed against any other countries.
The reported formation of the Asia Pacific joint patrol comes as China modernises and upgrades its naval fleet to become a 'blue water' force, capable of carrying out long-range operations in the world's oceans, similar to the United States and other Western forces.
Russia and China, which signed a 'no-limits' strategic partnership shortly before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, conduct regular exercises to rehearse coordination between their armed forces and send a deterrent signal to adversaries.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Jazeera
4 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
China warns Philippines over Taiwan remarks amid rising tensions
China has sharply criticised Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr after he suggested his country would be drawn into a potential conflict between China and the United States over Taiwan. During a state visit to India this week, Marcos said the Philippines' geographic proximity and the large Filipino community in Taiwan meant the country would be forced to get involved in the event of war. 'If there is an all-out war, then we will be drawn into it,' Marcos told Indian broadcaster Firstpost. 'There are many, many Filipino nationals in Taiwan and that would be immediately a humanitarian problem.' In response, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a strongly worded statement on Friday, warning Manila not to 'play with fire' and urging it to uphold the one China principle. 'Geographical proximity and large overseas populations are not excuses for interfering in others' internal affairs,' the statement read. Tensions between China and the Philippines have intensified in recent years over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Both sides have accused each other of provocations, with altercations at sea involving ramming incidents, water cannon blasts, and clashes involving weapons such as spears and knives. Beijing continues to assert that Taiwan is part of its territory and a breakaway province, a position Taipei rejects. China also dismissed Marcos's justification as undermining both international law and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations charter, saying his comments risk destabilising regional peace and harming the interests of the Philippine people. Marcos's trip to India also saw the signing of new security agreements aimed at strengthening defence ties between New Delhi and Manila, including cooperation between both countries' armies, air forces and navies. Indian warships recently began joint patrols with the Philippine Navy in the contested South China Sea in a move likely to anger China. In another sign of rising tensions, Philippine officials earlier this week condemned the launch of a Chinese rocket, which they said dropped suspected debris near a western province, alarming residents and threatening local ships and aircraft. No damage or injuries were reported. The escalating maritime standoff has also increasingly drawn in the United States, which has a mutual defence pact with the Philippines. Washington has reaffirmed its commitment to defend Filipino forces, including coastguard personnel, aircraft and public vessels, should they come under attack anywhere in the South China Sea.
Al Jazeera
11 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,261
Here is how things stand on Friday, August 8: Fighting The Ukrainian military said its drone units hit the Afipsky oil refinery in Russia's Krasnodar region. It was not immediately clear what the extent of the damage was at the refinery, which, together with the Krasnodar refinery, processed 7.2 million metric tonnes of crude oil in 2024. Local Russian emergency services said they had extinguished a fire at the Afipsky refinery, saying it was caused by fallen drone debris. The Russian Ministry of Defence said air defence systems had shot down nine Ukrainian drones in the region overnight. Russia's Defence Ministry said air defence systems also shot down eight British-made Storm Shadow missiles launched by the Ukrainian army over the past 24 hours. Russia also hit a Ukrainian railway hub used for transferring weapons and military equipment to Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region, the ministry added. Gas supplies continued on Thursday through the Orlovka interconnector in southern Ukraine, which was attacked by Russian drones on Wednesday, the Ukrainian gas transmission operator said. Ceasefire Russia's Deputy United Nations Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy said that Russian President Vladimir Putin may meet with United States President Donald Trump next week, but said he was not aware of any planned meeting between Putin and Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump said Putin does not have to agree to meet with Zelenskyy in order to have a meeting with him. Putin said that the United Arab Emirates is one of the suitable locations to hold a meeting with Trump. Putin added that he was not 'on the whole' against meeting Zelenskyy, adding that 'certain conditions should be created' for such a meeting. He stressed that the current situation was 'far' from being ready for it. French President Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed France's full support for a ceasefire in Ukraine and the launch of talks aimed at reaching a lasting and solid peace, following a 'long discussion' with Zelenskyy and other European leaders. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she had spoken with Zelenskyy about the developments of the last days and next steps. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the conflict in Ukraine during a phone call with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Sanctions and tariffs Russia and India stressed their commitment to a 'strategic partnership' in bilateral security talks in Moscow, a day after Trump announced higher tariffs on imports from India because of its purchases of Russian oil. Russia's Interfax news agency quoted Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval as saying that New Delhi was looking forward to a visit from Putin by the end of the year. Russia's central bank has tweaked its rules for non-residents, allowing foreigners' funds from special type-C accounts to pass to Russian investors when involved in the exchange of assets, a move that could free up blocked capital in Russia and abroad. As Russia sought to ratchet up military production for the war in Ukraine, a state-owned explosives manufacturer circumvented Western sanctions by purchasing equipment made by Germany's Siemens from a middleman that imports technology from China, the Reuters news agency reported. Regional developments Zelenskyy said he discussed a new financial assistance programme that will 'strengthen Ukrainians now and in the post-war period' on a call with International Monetary Fund managing director Kristalina Georgieva. Russia said it had protested to Italy this week over what it called 'odious' anti-Russian statements, in an ongoing row over the cancellation of a concert by Russian conductor Valery Gergiev in Italy.
Qatar Tribune
14 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Putin publicly confirms summit with Trump
DPA Berlin/Kiev Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly confirmed for the first time on Thursday his planned meeting with US President Donald Trump and said the UAE could be a suitable location for the summit. Earlier, the Kremlin had confirmed the Trump-Putin summit, saying preparations were already under way, according to a voice message from Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov that the Kremlin published. Ushakov said the initiative for the US-Russia meeting came from Washington. He had said that there was an agreement on the location but that it would be announced later. Moscow reserved about meeting with Zelensky Trump plans to first meet Putin and then expand the talks into a trilateral meeting with Zelensky. However, the Kremlin has been reserved about a meeting between Putin and Zelensky. On Thursday, Putin said he considers a meeting with Zelensky as possible, but the conditions for such negotiations must be right, and the prerequisites for this are still far from being met. Putin made his comments at the Kremlin on the sidelines of a meeting with Emirati President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Putin did not list his conditions, but previously the Kremlin had insisted that Ukraine give up the territories Russia occupies, including Crimea which it illegally annexed in 2014, that western nations stop supplying Ukraine with weapons and that they exclude Ukraine from NATO membership. Earlier in the day, Putin adviser Ushakov downplayed the potential for a meeting with Zelensky.
