ORENBURG, Sept. 7 -- The first echelon of the Chinese troops delivered by train to participate in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) "Peace Mission 2021" joint anti-terrorism military exercise arrived at the Donguz railway station in Orenburg Oblast, Russia at 15:30 on September 6, local time. The Russian side held a brief and warm welcome ceremony for them.
With the cooperation of the Russian staff, the Chinese service members quickly transferred their equipment from the train onto the platform. After unloading the hardware, they in battle groups headed for the exercise area more than 50 kilometers away to set up the field camp.
The first echelon delivered by railway consists of 172 troops and 44 pieces of equipment. They departed from Manzhouli Port of Inner Mongolia on August 28 and passed Chita, Irkutsk, Novosibirsk, Tyumen, Ufa along the Trans-Siberian Railway. The nine-day trip covers more than 6,300 kilometers in five time zones.
They were assigned to set up the commanding, defense and living facilities for the Chinese participating troops in accordance with actual combat requirements, and work with the Russian side to establish a supply channel of food, water, and POL, to ensure that the follow-up echelons can immediately participate in the exercise upon arrival.