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Strengthening Cooperation
Joint exercises are an indicator of the “temperature” between different militaries. Last year, the Chinese army stepped up participation in international drills, with an increasing number of nations, so as to deepen exchanges and cooperation.
Russian forces are the most familiar to Chinese troops. In January, the Chinese and Russian navies for the first time held a joint exercise in the Mediterranean Sea, during which commanders from both sides directed drills, while onboard helicopters practiced landing and takeoff from the Chinese and Russian warships. In May, the two navies sent more than 20 warships and submarines to take part in a joint exercise in the East China Sea. In August, the defense departments and armies of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan, and Tajikistan jointly held “Peace Mission 2014,” an anti-terror exercise organized by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Before then, Chinese and Russian troops had just met in two international military competitions: the Tank Biathlon and Aviadarts.
Chinese and U.S. troops had a similar number of exchanges, but these drew more international attention. In February, China for the first time sent warships to take part in the Cobra Gold naval rescue drills, which, despite their humanitarian nature, aroused hot debate among neighboring countries. In July, China joined the RIMPAC (Rim of the Pacific) 2014 multinational exercise for the first time.
In addition, the USS Blue Ridge, flagship of the U.S. Seventh Fleet, joined a rescue exercise with the Chinese navy in August. In October, China, the U.S. and Australia held the Kowary joint exercise in Australia. To avoid misunderstandings and accidents, Chinese and U.S. forces held a series of drills under the Maritime Accident Meet Rules in different areas.
Chinese forces also held a number of joint exercises and drills with Pakistani troops, the “Hand-in-Hand 2014”joint anti-terror training with the Indian army, the Drop Edge 2014 joint anti-terror drill with the Indonesian air force, as well as exercises and trainings with Singapore and other nations. In 2014, China held more than 30 joint exercises and drills with foreign countries, exceeding those of previous years in content and scale.
With vicissitudes in international and regional security situation, the Chinese army has actively participated in joint exercises and drills, and in different forms of multilateral and bilateral military exchanges, to develop relations between forces of different countries, which has increased mutual understanding and trust.
