Ministry of Defense of China said on August 17, 2022, that Beijing would send a contingent of its troops to Russia to participate in joint military exercises involving several other countries, including India, Belarus, Mongolia and Tajikistan.
Source: Ministry of Defense of China
On August 17, China’s Ministry of Defense said that participation in the joint exercises was “not related to the current international and regional situation,” apparently referring to Russia’s ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The exercise is part of an ongoing bilateral annual cooperation agreement. Similar joint exercises under the leadership of Russia with the participation of China have already taken place in recent years.
“The goal is to deepen pragmatic and friendly cooperation with the armies of the participating countries, increase the level of strategic cooperation between the participating parties, and strengthen the ability to respond to various security threats.”
China is among the countries that avoided imposing sanctions in response to Russia’s war against Ukraine.
In July 2022, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi that he disagreed with Beijing’s claims of alleged neutrality in the Russian-Ukrainian war, and expressed Washington’s concern “that China has sided with Russia.”
See also: US President calls on Russia and China to enter talks on nuclear arms control
