They will be held in Indonesia
BANGKOK, November 23. /tass/. The first-ever naval exercises of Russia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will be held from December 1 to 3 this year in Indonesia. This was announced to the TASS correspondent on Tuesday by the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to ASEAN, Alexander Ivanov.
According to the interlocutor of the agency, "the Russia-ASEAN naval exercises will be held from December 1 to December 3 in the territorial waters of Indonesia in the area of North Sumatra." "The large anti-submarine ship Admiral Panteleev will take part in them from the Russian side," Ivanov said.
As he explained, the maneuvers are aimed at working out "the interaction between the Russian Navy and the Navies of the ASEAN member countries to ensure the safety of maritime commercial activities and navigation." "The exercises will be divided into two phases - virtual and marine," Ivanov added. Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto is expected to launch the exercises.
On October 28, the 4th Russia-ASEAN Summit was held via videoconference. The meeting was timed to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the establishment of relations between the Russian Federation and the association, celebrated this year. Following the summit, a number of documents were adopted aimed at further development of strategic partnership. The leaders approved the decision to hold the first-ever naval exercises of the Russian Federation and ASEAN.