China, Russia Navies Complete Joint Patrol in Northeast Asia
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- Chinese and Russian navies completed a joint patrol lasting more than two weeks, with the task force arriving in Vladivostok on July 29, according to Xinhua.
- Xinhua stated the patrol was part of the annual military cooperation plan between the two countries and "not related to the current international and regional situation."
- The task force departed Qingdao on July 13 and sailed through Miyako Strait, Vries Strait, and La Perouse Strait — known in Japan as Etorofu Strait and Soya Strait respectively.
- The patrol route covered the western Pacific, Sea of Okhotsk, and Sea of Japan, transiting waterways closely monitored by the United States, Japan, and other regional powers.
- The participating vessels included Chinese guided-missile destroyers Kaifeng and Anshan, supply ship Kekexilihu, and Russian navy frigate Rezky Corvette.
- During the patrol, the two navies conducted helicopter cross-deck landings, joint counter-terrorism exercises, humanitarian rescue missions, and visit-board-search-and-seizure (VBSS) operations.
- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov last week that China and Russia should strengthen strategic coordination and "never allow Japan to rearm."
Why it matters: The patrol transited three strategic straits near Japan and Russia's Far East that the US and Japan actively monitor, while accompanying diplomatic messaging from Wang Yi explicitly framed Japan as a target of China-Russia strategic coordination, suggesting the official "not related to the current regional situation" framing understates the signaling value to Tokyo and its allies.
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