BEIJING, September 27. /TASS/. The Vostok-2018 exercise consolidated friendship, confidence and cooperation between the armed forces of China and Russia. Spokesman for China’s Ministry of National Defense Ren Guoqiang reported at Thursday’s press conference that the regular participation of the Chinese People's Liberation Army in Russian strategic drills should be discussed by both sides.

"The current drills made it possible to fully use the effectiveness of the changes in the Ministry of National Defense and the armed forces. The armies of China and Russia carried out a joint field exercise, learnt from each other and developed friendship and mutual confidence in joint combat activities," he noted.

The massive Vostok-2018 exercise was carried out from September 11 to 17 under the command of Russian Defense Minister Army General Sergei Shoigu on the soil and in the waters of Russia’s Far East and in the neighboring waters of the Pacific Ocean. A total of about 300,000 servicemen took part in it, as well as more than 1,000 planes, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles, along with as many as 36,000 tanks, armored fighting vehicles and other cars, and up to 80 ships and support vessels. As many as 3,500 servicemen from the Chinese People's Liberation Army took part in the exercise.