Steph Deschamps / August 18, 2022
Beijing will send troops to Russia to participate in joint military exercises at the end of the month, in order to deepen cooperation between the two armies, the Chinese Defense Ministry announced.
China and Russia have close defense ties, and Beijing has said it wants to take bilateral relations to a higher level, despite international condemnation over the war in Ukraine.
According to a statement released Wednesday, China will participate in the annual Vostok exercises - scheduled from August 30 to September 5, according to Moscow - as part of its cooperation with Russia.
The objective is to deepen the practical and friendly cooperation with the armies of the participating countries, increase the level of strategic collaboration between the participating parties and strengthen the ability to respond to various security threats, said the Ministry of Defense in the statement.
India, Belarus, Mongolia, Tajikistan, among others, will also participate in these exercises. China and India have been accused in recent months of diplomatically covering for Russia by opposing Western sanctions and arms sales to Ukraine.
But Beijing insists that its participation in the military exercises is completely unrelated to the current regional and international situation. These are the second joint exercises conducted by China and Russia this year.
Washington regularly expresses concern about the rapprochement between China and Russia, believing that it endangers global security.