China plans intensive round of military drills in end-of-year catch-up
- The PLA Navy is holding three 10-day exercises simultaneously after year of delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic
- Home-grown aircraft carrier Shandong and the Type 075 amphibious assault ship will take part
Three 10-day military exercises will be held simultaneously off the southern Chinese coast from Tuesday, according to notices posted by China’s maritime safety administrations.
According to three separate notices released on Tuesday night, access to the waters surrounding Hainan – China’s southernmost province – in the South China Sea will be restricted during the military training.
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China’s People’s Liberation Army ground forces hold attack drill
According to China’s defence ministry, the world’s largest armed force – with about 2.3 million personnel – has had zero confirmed cases of Covid-19.
But safety concerns over the pandemic prompted the PLA to put scheduled exercises on hold, delay its annual spring recruitment programme until August, and switch some training to classroom study of military theory.
“The Shandong aircraft carrier and China’s second Type 075 amphibious assault ship will join the exercises,” the source said, adding the drills would also test new equipment which had joined the service over the past year.
“These exercises are arranged according to the PLA’s annual training plan signed by Xi Jinping, Chairman of the Central Military Mission, in January.”