China plans to send troops to Russia for their first joint military exercise since the Kremlin invaded Ukraine, with both countries stressing that it merely serves as ''friendly cooperation,'' Reuters reported Wednesday.
From Aug. 30 to Sept. 5, the two nations will conduct the movements in the far eastern portion of Russia, near the city of Vladivostok. The exercises, thousands of miles from the ongoing war in Ukraine, will include all necessary personnel, weapons and equipment.
Chinese officials said in a statement that the Vostok exercises ''are in no way related to the current international and regional situation'' in Ukraine and Taiwan, according to the Russian News Agency TASS.
Instead, the officials emphasized that the exercises are for ''increasing the level of strategic interaction by all parties'' and strengthening responses to ''various security threats.''
''In accordance with the annual plan for cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries and the bilateral agreements, the PLA will soon delegate and send part of its forces to Russia for participation in the Vostok-2022 exercise,'' the statement read.
The news comes a year after China and Russia held other joint drills in China's Ningxia province involving more than 10,000 troops. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu praised the exercises at the time, U.S. News & World Report noted.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is reportedly skeptical of China's claims of being neutral in the Ukrainian conflict and is concerned about the country's growing cooperation with Russia, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Much of that skepticism comes from China being one of the world's largest and most developed countries to decline sanctioning Russia when Russian forces invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.
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