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China's navy drills unrelated to US' Pacific deployment
China's military authority announced on Wednesday they will conduct naval drills in the west Pacific later this month, in an official move targeted at consolidating military capabilities rather than a response to recent maritime stand-offs in the Pacific region, said Chinese experts.
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy is to conduct a military exercise in the west Pacific around the end of November, according to a statement issued on Wednesday from China's Ministry of National Defense.
"It is an annual routine drill, and not directed at any specific nation or target in accordance with relevant international laws and global practices. China's navigational freedoms, among other legal rights, should not be hindered," said the statement.
The specific authority did not reveal the area where the drills would take place, nor did it disclose which facilities would be used during the practice.
On Wednesday, Japan's NHK television network cited the Japanese Defense Ministry as saying that six Chinese naval vessels had crossed into the ocean area between Japan's two major Okinawa Prefecture islands sometime early Tuesday.
One intelligence-gathering ship from China's military force has already crossed into the Pacific after sailing 100 kilometers away from Japan's Miyako-jima Island on Tuesday according to Japan's anti-submarine aircraft patrol, the report said, adding that another five ships from China, including one destroyer, a supply ship, and three other vessels, also went through the Pacific on the same day.
Japan's Defense Ministry announced that they have dispatched aircraft and ships to "closely monitor" China's drills near Okinawa, Japan.
The PLA Navy sent 11 vessels to the same area for a military drill in June, including two submarines, a rescue ship and three destroyers, which also placed Japanese troops on high alert, China Central Television (CCTV) reported.
Li Jie, a senior captain at the Chinese Naval Research Institute, told the Global Times on Thursday that the military move was not aimed at US pressure or at the run-ins with relevant nations on South China Sea issues, as the scheduled time for the drills was established at the beginning of the year.
In Australia last week, US President Barack Obama announced that the US will permanently base some of its Marine forces in Darwin beginning next year, a move analysts say shows the US is bolstering its presence in the Pacific region.
Peng Guangqian, a military expert at the PLA Academy of Military Science, echoed Li's words by saying, "the naval drill is aimed more at testing the liability and performance of third-generation naval equipment under complicated weather conditions via military exercises on the high seas."
Peng said communication along with maneuverability and commanding capabilities while at out sea are probably the drills most practiced which are meant to enhance strategic and technological competence.
"Only on-the-spot practice can reveal problems, which military forces might be confronted with in real battles," Peng noted.
Japan's NHK reported that China's exercises did not violate international law, which was later echoed by Captain John Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman, when he said the US had no problem with the naval exercises as China was "entitled to exercise their military in ways they deem fit," the BBC reported on Thursday.
http://www.globaltimes.cn/NEWS/tabi...nrelated-to-US-Pacific-deployment-expert.aspx
China's military authority announced on Wednesday they will conduct naval drills in the west Pacific later this month, in an official move targeted at consolidating military capabilities rather than a response to recent maritime stand-offs in the Pacific region, said Chinese experts.
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy is to conduct a military exercise in the west Pacific around the end of November, according to a statement issued on Wednesday from China's Ministry of National Defense.
"It is an annual routine drill, and not directed at any specific nation or target in accordance with relevant international laws and global practices. China's navigational freedoms, among other legal rights, should not be hindered," said the statement.
The specific authority did not reveal the area where the drills would take place, nor did it disclose which facilities would be used during the practice.
On Wednesday, Japan's NHK television network cited the Japanese Defense Ministry as saying that six Chinese naval vessels had crossed into the ocean area between Japan's two major Okinawa Prefecture islands sometime early Tuesday.
One intelligence-gathering ship from China's military force has already crossed into the Pacific after sailing 100 kilometers away from Japan's Miyako-jima Island on Tuesday according to Japan's anti-submarine aircraft patrol, the report said, adding that another five ships from China, including one destroyer, a supply ship, and three other vessels, also went through the Pacific on the same day.
Japan's Defense Ministry announced that they have dispatched aircraft and ships to "closely monitor" China's drills near Okinawa, Japan.
The PLA Navy sent 11 vessels to the same area for a military drill in June, including two submarines, a rescue ship and three destroyers, which also placed Japanese troops on high alert, China Central Television (CCTV) reported.
Li Jie, a senior captain at the Chinese Naval Research Institute, told the Global Times on Thursday that the military move was not aimed at US pressure or at the run-ins with relevant nations on South China Sea issues, as the scheduled time for the drills was established at the beginning of the year.
In Australia last week, US President Barack Obama announced that the US will permanently base some of its Marine forces in Darwin beginning next year, a move analysts say shows the US is bolstering its presence in the Pacific region.
Peng Guangqian, a military expert at the PLA Academy of Military Science, echoed Li's words by saying, "the naval drill is aimed more at testing the liability and performance of third-generation naval equipment under complicated weather conditions via military exercises on the high seas."
Peng said communication along with maneuverability and commanding capabilities while at out sea are probably the drills most practiced which are meant to enhance strategic and technological competence.
"Only on-the-spot practice can reveal problems, which military forces might be confronted with in real battles," Peng noted.
Japan's NHK reported that China's exercises did not violate international law, which was later echoed by Captain John Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman, when he said the US had no problem with the naval exercises as China was "entitled to exercise their military in ways they deem fit," the BBC reported on Thursday.
http://www.globaltimes.cn/NEWS/tabi...nrelated-to-US-Pacific-deployment-expert.aspx
