PUTIN’S SHOW OF STRENGTH
Russia and China combine forces for largest military exercise since the Cold War
RUSSIA launched its largest military exercises since the Cold War yesterday.
In a huge show of force, around 300,000 Russian troops went on manoeuvres with their counterparts from China and Mongolia.
The war games follow months of tension with the West over Moscow’s support for the Syrian regime, the nerve agent attacks in Britain and interference in the US elections.
The Kremlin hopes the mobilisation of more than 1,000 aircraft, two naval fleets and thousands of paratroopers will project an image of military might and international dominance.
Military experts say Russia is effectively rehearsing for a global war, and that the US and Nato would be watching the mobilisation very carefully.
The exercise, Vostok 2018, is expected to feature Russia’s latest technology, including Iskander and Kalibr missiles that are capable of carrying nuclear warheads, T-80 and T-90 tanks, and Su34 and Su-35 fighter jets.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was essential for Russia to show it could defend itself ‘in the current international situation, which is often aggressive and unfriendly’.
It is the first time China has played such a role and signals a growing alliance with Russia. It sent 3,200 troops, 24 helicopters and six fixed-wing aircraft.
President Vladimir Putin met his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, at an economic forum in Vladivostok as the war games got under way, and praised the increasingly close ties between the two countries. The leaders smiled as they posed for photographs, making blini pancakes loaded with caviar before toasting each other with shots of vodka.
Mr Putin said Russia and China had ‘trustworthy ties in political, security and defence spheres’.
Mr Xi, whose relationship with the US has been hit by trade sanctions, said the friendship with Russia was ‘getting stronger all the time’.
Mr Putin has prioritised military spending, and Vostok 2018 will showcase the scale of its new capabilities.
The Kremlin released images of marines from Russia’s northern fleet disembarking from a large landing ship on a barren shoreline opposite Alaska. At its narrowest point, the Bering Strait between Siberia and the US state is only about 88 kilometres wide.
Russia has been preparing for weeks, including synchronised missile launches from land, ship and submarine against offshore targets.
The Russian army has compared the show of force to the Soviet-era 1981 war games which saw up to 150,000 Warsaw Pact soldiers take part in the Zapad 81 exercises.
Defence minister Sergey Shoygu went further, saying Vostok 2018 was unprecedented.
Nato spokesman Oana Lungescu said this week’s manoeuvres were part of an emerging pattern. ‘A more assertive Russia, significantly increasing its defence budget and its military presence,’ she said. ‘China has growing military capabilities and is playing an increasingly significant global role.’
Pentagon spokesman Rob Manning said: ‘We’re watching it closely.’
‘We’re watching it closely’