Russia to Join China in North-Joint 2024 Military Drills

The Russian military will deploy its naval and air forces to join China's exercises in September, according to the Chinese Defense Ministry on September 9.

The North-Joint 2024 exercises will be conducted in the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk, aiming to "enhance strategic cooperation between the Chinese and Russian militaries and their capacity to jointly address security threats," the ministry stated.

The precise date for the drills has not been announced.

Additionally, the Russian and Chinese naval forces will undertake their fifth joint maritime patrol in the Pacific Ocean, and China will participate in Russia's Ocean-2024 exercises.

The two countries previously held joint drills at a Chinese military base in Zhanjiang in July.

The July exercises followed NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg's remarks that alliance members agreed China is a "decisive enabler" in Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

A joint declaration by NATO members also labeled China as a threat to the alliance's interests and security, marking the first time all NATO members have explicitly stated this in an official document, according to Stoltenberg.