QINGDAO /China/, August 21. /TASS/. The Russian and Chinese navies are set to expand the scope of their joint drills, a Russian Pacific Fleet warship commander told reporters on Monday.
"With each year, these drills build up their stages. Last year, only patrolling along the designated route was conducted. Next year, as it has been said, larger-scale drills involving the land phase will be held. The plans are dimensional," Commander of the Pacific Fleet’s Admiral Tributs Large-Anti-Submarine Warfare Ship Captain 2nd Rank Igor Tolbatov said at the Qingdao port where a group of Russian combat ships was staying after their return from the Russia-China joint naval drills.
The Russian Navy’s large anti-submarine warfare ships Admiral Tributs and Admiral Panteleyev, corvette Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov and other vessels called at the port of Qingdao after the joint patrol with Chinese warships in the western and northern parts of the Pacific Ocean.
"This patrol was the longest and its first stage lasted a week. It was more intense with combat exercises and joint maneuvering. Aircraft from both our side and the Chinese side carried out a large number of flights. Weather conditions were favorable and enabled us to accomplish all objectives safely and achieve excellent results. The second stage was lengthier. We sailed as far as Kamchatka, the Aleutian Islands and along the Pacific Ocean," the commander specified.
The Russian warships entered Chinese waters in a sign of both sides’ mutual respect, he stressed.
"The warship [Admiral Tributs] called at this port on many occasions, with a periodicity of once every two or three years. We are familiar with these territorial waters," the warship commander said.
Russia-China joint naval drills
Russian and Chinese navies conducted the joint naval drills codenamed: North. Interaction 2023 in the Sea of Japan on July 20-23. The drills involved over 20 joint combat exercises, including artillery firings against various types of targets.
The Russian Navy was represented in the drills by the Pacific Fleet’s large anti-submarine warfare ships Admiral Tributs and Admiral Panteleyev, the missile corvettes Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov and Gremyashchiy and support vessels. The Chinese Navy was represented in the joint maneuvers by the destroyers Qiqihar and Guiyang, the frigates Zaozhuang and Rizhao and the replenishment ship Taihu.
In addition, the drills involved over 30 naval aircraft from both sides, including anti-submarine warfare planes and helicopters and fighter-interceptors.
On July 24, the Chinese warships paid a friendly visit to the Russian Far Eastern port of Vladivostok. After the joint drills, the warships of both countries carried out joint patrolling in the designated areas of the Pacific Ocean.