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Military drills

South Africa, Russia, China to hold joint naval drills in February

The drills will take place in the Indian Ocean in the area of the port city of Durban and Richards Bay

PRETORIA, January 19. /TASS/. Naval drills involving ships of the South African Republic, Russia and China will take place in South Africa between February 17 and 27 in order to strengthen multilateral ties between the three countries, the South African Department of Defense announced Thursday.

The drills will take place in the Indian Ocean in the area of the port city of Durban and Richards Bay (located 87 nautical miles apart), the Department of Defense said in a statement published on its website, adding that the exercise aims for exchange of operational skills and knowledge and should strengthen in the already prosperous relations between the states.

South Africa will be represented with a contingent of 350 servicemen of various branches of the Armed forces, which will operate in close cooperation with Russian and Chinese counterparts. The Department of Defense also noted that the first trilateral exercise took place in November 2019 near South Africa’s Cape Town. Previously, the Department of Defense said that Russia is expected to be represented by two ships.

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Military drills

Military drills

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