Moscow. September 15th. INTERFAX - Russian and Chinese warships are conducting joint patrols in the waters of the Pacific Ocean, including the Sea of Okhotsk, exercises with practical artillery firing are planned, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Thursday.
"A detachment of warships of the Pacific Fleet of the Russian Federation with ships of the naval forces of the People's Liberation Army of China has begun to solve the tasks of joint maritime patrol in the waters of the Sea of Okhotsk and the Pacific Ocean," Alexander Bagdasarov, Deputy commander of the Primorsky Flotilla of heterogeneous forces, said in a video distributed by the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
"The crews of Russian and Chinese warships will work out joint tactical maneuvering and organization of communication between the ships of the grouping, conduct a series of exercises with practical artillery firing, and provide flights of deck helicopters," the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
This is the second joint patrol of Russian and Chinese ships in the Pacific Ocean as part of the international military cooperation program, the ministry said. The first one took place in October 2021. Then the Russian-Chinese group passed through the Sangar Strait, the sailors of the two countries conducted several training sessions and covered over 1,700 nautical miles.
"The tasks of the patrol are to strengthen naval cooperation between the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China, maintain peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, monitor the sea area, as well as protect objects of maritime economic activity of the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China," the Russian Defense Ministry said.
According to the ministry, a detachment of ships of the Pacific Fleet of Russia is taking part in the current patrol: the frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov, the corvettes Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov, Perfect and Loud, the sea tanker Pechenga.
From the Chinese Navy, the destroyer "Nian Chan", the patrol ship "Yang Chen" and the integrated supply vessel "Dong Pinghu" are involved in the patrol, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported.
"Dear comrades! We are pleased to welcome the crews of warships of the naval forces of the People's Liberation Army of China on joint maritime patrol," Bagdasarov said during radio conversations with the Chinese military on video footage, which was distributed by the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.
"The Chinese side is pleased to welcome the warships of the Russian Navy, and also believes that this event will ensure stability and security in the Asia-Pacific region," the Chinese military responded through a Russian translator to the video of the Russian Defense Ministry.
It was reported that Russian and Chinese ships practiced joint actions to protect maritime communications in the northern and central parts of the Sea of Japan during the strategic command and staff exercise of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation "Vostok-2022", which took place on September 1-7.
