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China, Russia, Iran launch five days of navy drills in Gulf of Oman, close to US-led Middle East sea exercise
- ‘Security Bond-2023’ drills from Wednesday based on similar three-way manoeuvres in 2019 and 2022, Chinese defence ministry says
- The US is hosting the Middle East’s largest maritime drills in the region, an 18-day event involving 50 countries and international agencies
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China, Russia and Iran launched joint naval exercises in the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday, as rival power the United States hosts the Middle East’s largest maritime drills nearby.
The joint naval manoeuvres with Iran and Russia will run until Sunday, China’s Ministry of Defence said, adding they will help “deepen practical cooperation among the navies of participating countries”.
Officially named “Security Bond-2023”, the exercise has been developed from similar training carried out by the three countries in 2019 and 2022, and will include “aerial search operations, sea rescue [and] fleet formation exercises, as well as other tasks”, the ministry statement said.
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The statement also said other countries are involved but did not give details.
01:07
China and Russia conduct joint naval exercises to strengthen alliance
China and Russia conduct joint naval exercises to strengthen alliance
The Security Bond drills coincide with the last leg of the 18-day International Maritime Exercise 2023, which kicked off on March 2 at the US 5th Fleet’s headquarters in Bahrain.
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