The Russian and Chinese navies kicked off a joint exercise in the Yellow Sea on Monday.
The joint naval exercise includes submarines and surface vessels from both Russia and China, according to a Monday press release from the Chinese Ministry of National Defense. After the exercise, the Chinese and Russian naval assets will join together for a “joint maritime patrol,” according to a Sunday press release.
The Chinese forces included two missile destroyers, “Kaifeng” and “Ansha,” the missile frigate “Wuhu,” the comprehensive supply ship “Kekexilihu,” the submarine rescue ship “Yangchenghu,” and one unnamed submarine, according to a second Chinese Ministry of National Defense press release on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the Russian assets in the exercise included the Guards cruiser “Varyag,” the corvette “Rezkiy,” the diesel-electric submarine “Ufa,” and the rescue vessel “Igor Belousov,” Russian state-run news agency RIA Novosti reported Sunday. The exercise will take place from July 6 to 13, according to the outlet.
“China and Russia are showing that they will continue relatively frequent joint military exercises,” Lyle Goldstein, the director of Asia engagement at Defense Priorities, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Both sides have benefited from this ongoing cooperation that has been underway for about two decades. I believe they are projecting strength, but also consistency of resolve and additionally restraint too.”
“China and Russia have always adhered to the principle of non-alliance, non-confrontation, and non-targeting of any third party in developing their bilateral and military-to-military relations. Exercise Joint Sea is an institutionalized cooperation program between the Chinese and Russian navies,” a spokesperson from the Chinese Embassy in Washington told the DCNF. “Since its inception in 2012, the exercise has been held over 10 times and has become a key platform for China-Russia military cooperation. This exercise is aimed at jointly addressing security challenges and safeguarding regional peace and stability, and it does not target any third party. We hope relevant parties will view defense cooperation between China and Russia objectively and rationally, and stop spreading groundless speculation and smears.”
The White House, the Russian Embassy in Washington, the U.S. 7th Fleet and Taiwan’s TECRO office in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. The Pentagon and U.S. Indo-Pacific Command declined to comment.
The State Department could not provide a comment in time for publication.
“I would suggest that these drills are a reaction to larger drills that are often undertaken by the US and its allies,” Goldstein told the DCNF. “For instance, the RIMPAC drills that will take place shortly in Hawaii are many times larger than this China-Russia joint naval exercise. It is notable that the China-Russia drills will have a submarine rescue component. It suggests that China and Russia continue to work closely in submarine development, including doctrine. Both Chinese and Russian navies prioritize undersea warfare and thus are naturally both eager to improve submarine rescue practices.”
The exercise will take place in three phases: force assembly, harbor-based planning and at-sea operations, according to the Monday press release from the Chinese Ministry of National Defense. The force assembly was completed on Sunday.
The proposed “joint maritime patrol” after the exercise will be conducted “in relevant areas of the Pacific Ocean,” according to a Sunday Chinese Ministry of National Defense press release. Currently, it remains unclear where this patrol will take place.
“For China, there is the opportunity to gather more lessons from Russia’s navy concerning the conflict in the Black Sea, for example, concerning drone operations against warships,” Goldstein told the DCNF. “As to Russia, there is the opportunity to operate with China’s ever more cutting-edge warships, so there is the chance to meaningfully understand the Chinese Navy’s more advanced systems, sensors, and weapons in order to aid doctrinal development.”
Ukraine has repeatedly battered Russia’s Black Sea Fleet since the start of the Russo-Ukrainian War, causing significant damage and losses to Russian naval assets.
The Ukrainian military sank the guided-missile cruiser “Moskva,” flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet, on April 14, 2022, The Associated Press reported. Other notable damages and losses to the Russian navy from the war include the Alligator-class landing ship “Saratov,” two Karakurt-class missile corvettes “Askold” and “Tsiklon” and minesweeper Valentin Pikul.
This is not the first instance of joint military training between the Russians and the Chinese in recent years.
China’s armed forces trained 200 Russian military personnel in the use of drones late in 2025, Reuters reported on May 19, 2026, citing three anonymous European intelligence agencies and documents. The training was approved by a document signed by senior Russian and Chinese officers and occurred in Beijing and Nanjing, Reuters reported.
Russian forces were also trained on radiological, chemical and biological protection at a military base in Beijing in November 2025, Reuters reported on July 1. The training was personally approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the outlet.
The joint training exercises between Russia and China are occurring as Putin grows closer to North Korean President Kim Jong Un, forming a love triangle in the region that could grow into a powerful military entente.
Over 10,000 North Korean troops are fighting for Russia in the Russo-Ukrainian war as of early 2026, the Kyiv Independent reported. The State Department first confirmed a North Korean presence on the battlefield in 2024.
The Yellow Sea is located between South Korea, North Korea and China. It is located north of the East China Sea and Taiwan Strait, where the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy drills escalated in June.
Chinese military assets plagued the area on June 2, 3, 4 and 5, according to multiple X posts from Taiwan’s Defense Ministry. A total of 79 People’s Liberation Army aircraft sorties were spotted by Taiwan’s Defense Ministry.
The aerial encroachment peaked on June 3 with 32 Chinese aircraft sorties in one day, as “25 out of 32 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern part ADIZ ,” according to the X post.
Goldstein told the DCNF that this exercise is unlikely to be a preparation for a larger regional war in Asia, given how busy Russia is in the Russo-Ukrainian War.
“The Kremlin has its hands full managing the war with Ukraine,” Goldstein told the DCNF. “It’s true that Russian and Chinese strategists occasionally discuss what they consider to be a joint threat emanating from a rearming Japan. But I do not think that either Moscow or Beijing are seeking military conflict with Japan, so I expect their approach to be moderate and restrained, including in the course of this quite commonplace naval drill.”
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