The naval drills involve more than 1,000 personnel and eight ships.
ZHANJIANG: The first-ever maritime exercise held by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China started on Monday (Oct 22) in the southern Chinese city of Zhanjiang.
Over the next six days, the navies of ASEAN and China will plan and conduct field training off the coast of Guangdong province, marking efforts by the regional bloc and Beijing to avoid military confrontations in Asia amid tensions in the region between the US and China.
The maritime exercise – first mooted in 2015 – is unprecedented. While this is not the first time ASEAN navies are taking part in multilateral naval drills, it is the first time ASEAN is engaging another country in such an exercise.
A second such exercise will take place soon. It was announced at the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) in Singapore last week that ASEAN and the United States will hold a joint maritime exercise next year.
At Monday’s opening ceremony of the ASEAN-China exercise, Singapore’s Chief of Navy, Rear-Admiral Lew Chuen Hong, said that the region’s prosperity is underpinned by a stable and secure sea.
“We also need to promote practical norms that support international laws, and enhance practical cooperation. The Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea, or CUES, is one such example – it enhances operational-level communication and reduces risk of miscalculations. Overall, it aims to improve trust,” he said.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/asean-china-kicks-off-first-maritime-exercise-10852692