China and Pakistan will hold their third joint naval exercises in November, the Chinese Defence Ministry announced on Thursday.
Sea Guardians-3
Senior Colonel Wu Qian, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of National Defence, said in a statement on Thursday that the two navies “will hold the ‘Sea Guardians-3’ joint maritime exercise in the waters and airspace of the northern Arabian Sea.”
He added that this year’s theme will focus on the “joint response to maritime security threats” and involve formation movements, VBSS (visit, board, search and seizure), helicopter cross-deck landing, joint search and rescue, anti-submarine operations, and main gun shooting, during which some professional exchanges and mutual visits will also be included.
“This is the third time for China and Pakistan to hold such exercise, aiming to consolidate the all-weather strategic partnership and traditional friendship between the two countries, and strengthen realistic combat training of the two militaries,” Wu said of the joint drills.
Past Military Cooperation
China and Pakistan have participated in many joint military drills as part of their all-weather strategic partnership.
Last month, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force’s J-16 fighter jet and Pakistan’s J-10C and JF-17 fighters conducted a joint air exercise in the airspace over northwest China. The drill aimed to validate interoperability in the face of “realistic contemporary air combat scenarios.”
Last July, they finished the second phase of the Sea Guardian drills, which aimed at “jointly dealing with maritime security threats” and enhancing “defence cooperation between China and Pakistan, while also promoting an all-weather strategic partnership.”
In May 2021, the two allies also engaged in a joint military exercise in Tibet, along the disputed Line of Actual Control (LAC) with India.
What the China-Pak Military Cooperation Means for India
Over the years, China and Pakistan have grown increasingly closer due to their common rivalry with India and their cooperation via the Belt and Road Initiative, under which they have launched the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
While India and Pakistan’s historic rivalry has deepened following the abrogation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019, China and India were caught in a year-long standoff along the LAC.
To counter this joint threat, New Delhi announced in December 2021 that it would deploy its first S-400 air defence system squadron to the Punjab sector. The delivery of the S-400s began in November of the same year as part of a 2018 $5.5 million deal between India and Russia for five squadrons of the advanced air defence systems.
China, Pakistan to Conduct Third Phase of Joint Naval Exercises in Arabian Sea
The two countries have previously participated in many joint military drills as part of their all-weather strategic partnership.
October 27, 2023
IMAGE SOURCE: PAKISTAN ANVYThe PNS Taimur, the second of four types of 054A/P frigates China built for Pakistan, was commissioned at the Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard in Shanghai on 23 June 2022.