China, Russia hold war games in South China SeaBEIJING: China and Russia will hold joint naval exercises in the South China Sea in September, Beijing’s defense ministry said Thursday, after an international tribunal invalidated the Asian giant’s extensive claims in the area. The two sides hold joint drills regularly. In May last year, they conducted their first joint naval exercises in European waters in the Black Sea and Mediterranean, China’s farthest-ever drills from its home waters. China and Russia have close military and diplomatic ties, often in opposition to the West, particularly the United States, and their leaders Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin enjoy a tight relationship. Last August, they carried out military exercises in the waters and airspace of the Peter the Great Gulf, south of the Russian Pacific city of Vladivostok, involving 22 vessels, up to 20 aircraft and more than 500 marines.

Source: Manila Times July 28, 2016 13:56 UTC