BEIJING, Nov. 25 -- "There is no limit to the mil-to-mil relationship between China and Russia, and there is no end to the China-Russia military cooperation," said Senior Colonel Wu Qian, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, when being asked to comment on the current mil-to-mil relationship between China and Russia at a regular press conference on Thursday.
Wu introduced that the bilateral military relations between China and Russia this year have following three notable features.
The first is that the two militaries have maintained close strategic communication. A series of activities and exchanges between the heads of the two militaries have been carried out. Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe attended the 9th Moscow Conference on International Security and met with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu twice. Li Zuocheng, chief of staff of the CMC Joint Staff Department, observed the “Peace Mission 2021” joint anti-terrorism military exercise of SCO members in Russia and held talks with the chief of staff of the Russian military. On November 23, Wei Fenghe held talks via video link with Sergei Shoigu, at which they reviewed the annual cooperation between the two militaries and exchanged views on future cooperation.
"The two militaries have intensified pragmatic cooperation on military exercise and training, and that's the second feature," Wu summarized. The Russian military came to China to join the exercise ZAPAD /INTERACTION-2021 for the first time. The two sides jointly held the naval exercise Joint Sea 2021 and the first joint maritime cruise, carried out three joint strategic air cruises, participated in the “Peace Mission 2021” joint anti-terrorism exercise of SCO members, and continued to deepen cooperation in the framework of the International Army Games 2021. "Their joint operation capability has been further enhanced," he noted.
Wu continued to introduce that the third feature is that the two militaries have continuously improved their military cooperation mechanism. Since the beginning of the year, the two sides have continued to push forward the building of military cooperation mechanisms and formulate cooperation and development plans. The two militaries have also further intensified coordination and cooperation within the SCO and other multilateral frameworks.
In the end, Senior Colonel Wu Qian highly appreciated the current mil-to-mil relations between China and Russia. He pointed out that 2021 marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, which is of special significance for both countries. "The Chinese military stands ready to engage in close strategic coordination with the Russian side and deepen exchanges and cooperation, in order to bring more benefits for the two countries and peoples, and play a bigger role in safeguarding world peace and stability," the spokesperson concluded.