MOSCOW, December 21. /TASS/. All attempts by Western countries to isolate Russia in the international arena are futile, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said at the expanded board meeting of the Russian Defense Ministry on Tuesday.

"The [Russian] Ministry of Defense cooperates with the Armed Forces of 109 countries. It demonstrates the futility of attempts by Western countries to isolate Russia in the international arena," he said.

According to Shoigu, the development of relations with the CSTO, CIS and SCO continues. "This year we conducted the third joint air and the first sea patrols with the People’s Liberation Army of China. We will carry on this work," he said. The defense minister also stressed that China, India, Algeria, Egypt, Vietnam and Myanmar remain Russia’s partners in the field of military cooperation.

In June, the 9th Moscow Conference on International Security was held with the participation of delegates from 109 countries. "That’s the most numerous military-political event in the world by the number of participants," Shoigu noted.

According to him, the annual Army Forum contributes to enhancing international military cooperation. The delegations of 117 foreign countries took part in it, and the number of visitors exceeded 1,700,000 people.