Russia, China to hold antiterror drills in August

Russia and China will conduct joint antiterrorism exercises in Russia’s Urals region in the first two weeks of August, a spokesman for the Central Military District said. “An international antiterrorism exercise with the units of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) at the Chebarkul military training area in the Chelyabinsk region is scheduled for August 1-15,” Col. Yaroslav Roshchupkin told Russian RIA Novosti news agency on Monday. The official said the drills will involve 600 personnel from each country. Russia and China have held a number of joint military exercises since 2005 within the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Founded in 2001, the SCO comprises Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The organization consolidates efforts to counter terrorism and radicalization among member countries, and coordinates work in other areas such as politics and trade. Moscow and Beijing have recently vowed to strengthen military cooperation to ensure an adequate and prompt response to common threats. As part of the new cooperation efforts, a delegation of Chinese paratroopers will visit Russia on May 28-31 to get acquainted with parachute systems and weaponry used by Russian Airborne Troops and to share combat training experience with their Russian counterparts.