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Sylvie Zhuang

China and Russia signalled their closer ties and interest in Arctic shipping routes with their first joint coastguard exercise and patrol earlier this month, observers said.
The China Coast Guard said its vessels, the Meishan and Xiushan, sailed to the Peter the Great Gulf in the Sea of Japan, or East Sea, for the drill from September 16-20.
China said the exercise tested personnel on dealing with maritime law enforcement security threats, interception of suspected criminal ships, sea rescue, and firefighting.
On September 21, the vessels embarked on a patrol with their Russian counterparts in the high seas of the North Pacific, the China Coast Guard said on its Weibo social media account.
The patrol took the ships close to the Arctic, according to footage posted online on Sunday by Yuyuan Tantian, a social media channel affiliated with China Central Television.
Earlier in the month, Russian naval and air forces joined the Chinese People’s Liberation Army for drills in the same area.
State news agency Xinhua said the activities were not aimed at third parties and were unrelated to international or regional issues.


Zhou Bo, a senior fellow at Tsinghua University’s Centre for International Security and Strategy, said the joint coastguard patrol was new and “reflects a new height of the political trust between the two countries”.
Military commentator Song Zhongping said the location of the joint patrol near Arctic shipping routes also showed that China wanted to work with Russia on Beijing’s “Polar Silk Road” plan.
The plan was released in 2018 and designed to harness resource and shipping opportunities in the Arctic that could arise from climate change.
The Arctic’s Northwest Passage links the Atlantic and Pacific oceans but is only open part of the year. Melting ice from climate change raises the possibility of a permanent sea lane, which would halve shipping time between Europe and Asia.
Russia, China and the United States are each eyeing the route as one of the most important maritime assets of this century.
In May, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and his Russian counterpart, Mikhail Mishustin, signed a joint communique agreeing to develop Arctic shipping routes.
Song said the coastguard would be responsible for safeguarding those routes.
“Ensuring the safety of the Arctic routes aligns closely with the practical interests of both China and Russia,” he said.
“It is crucial that the coastguards of the two countries conduct joint patrols to ensure the safety of the navigation routes.”




Fu Qianshao, a former PLA equipment expert, said the joint patrol was a response to US claims over the Bering Strait, as well as its cooperation with Canada and some Nordic countries.
It was also important to prepare for any international emergencies.
“This route passes through many countries, so it is necessary to establish corresponding law enforcement training to prevent accidents along this route in the future,” Fu said.
Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said the joint patrol was more important for China than for Russia.
“China’s coastguard is large and powerful, and many of the ships are former PLA Navy, so are far more capable than typical coastguard-type vessels,” Davis said.
“By exercising with the Russians, particularly in this location, along the Northeast Passage above Siberia, China sends a strong signal to Moscow – and to other Arctic states that it will be an active power in the region.”


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Maritime personnel put through their paces in the Sea of Japan as melting ice opens up potential for sea lanes


Maritime personnel put through their paces in the Sea of Japan as melting ice opens up potential for sea lanes.
