Chinese and Russian forces conducted a first-ever joint amphibious exercise landing 400 marines on Russia’s Pacific Coast about 300 miles away from Japan’s home islands, according to a description of the exercise and photographs released from the Chinese Ministry of Defense on Wednesday.
The exercise marks not only the first time People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and Russian Navy have drilled together in an amphibious exercise but also the first time China has landed troops on foreign territory as part of the ongoing Joint Sea 2015 II, the ministry said.
“For the first time, we shipped tanks and armored vehicles, and landed soldiers directly into an overseas drill area after a long-distance voyage,” said Liang Yang, assistant to the Chinese director of the drill in the Chinese statement on the amphibious component of the exercise —
“Such a drill will fully test the performance of our weapons in terms of adaptability to local weather and topographical conditions.”
The PLAN landed about 200 marines attached to the from Type 071 amphibious warship Changbaishan parked a little more than half a mile off the Russian Pacific coast in pictures dated Aug. 25.
Images published by the MoD show what appear to be several ZBD-05 infantry fighting vehicles — reminiscent of the U.S. Marines canceled Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) — deploy from Changbaishan to shore.
“This type of dry landing, which involves putting soldiers ashore without the need for wading, as they did previously, meets both our tactical demands and requirements for real-battle landing,” Liang said.
In addition to amphibious landings, the Chinese also used aviation assets to move troops to the beach via parachutes and fast ropes via helicopters.
The Chinese also employed fighters to provide air cover as part of the combined arms exercise.
The MoD did not elaborate on the Russian assets used in the amphibious exercise aside from a picture of Russian paratroopers.
The craft and tactics employed by the PLAN — well known for copying and adapting doctrine and material for their own needs — are reminiscent of the U.S. Marine methods of moving troops to shore via a doctrine that calls for enveloping an enemy by forces simultaneously via water landings and air insertion.
Amphibious assault is arguably one of the most complex military maneuvers, especially as the proliferation of relatively inexpensive guided weapons has grown worldwide. The U.S. Navy and Marines have mounted a years-long campaign to execute amphibious operations from beyond the line-of-sight from shore to better protect their ships.
Placing the sea base for the operation — Changbaishan — within sight of shore significantly lowered the degree of difficulty of the exercise and would put the 20,000-ton warship at significant risk against a prepared adversary in war time conditions.
While China is quick to say the joint exercise isn’t aimed to raise the ire of any particular nation the PLA has long tailored training operations to simulate a potential amphibious invasion of Taiwan as well as operations that have arguably simulated the quick capture and control the Japanese administrated Senkaku Islands off of Taiwan’s eastern coast.
More than 20 ships from China and Russia participated in Joint Sea 2015 II — the second joint Chinese-Russian exercise the year — which will conclude on Thursday. Joint Sea 2015 I was held in the Mediterranean — a first for China.
Russia and China announced an uptick in military-to-military cooperation late last year in an effort — officials from both countries say — is to boost collective regional security and serve as a backstop against the expansion of U.S. military and political influence in the region.
The following was the complete Aug. 26, 2015 report issued by the Chinese MoD.
The Chinese Navy completed its first overseas joint beach landing drill on Tuesday as part of an ongoing marine exercise with Russia.
The drill took place in waters off Russia’s Clerk Cape as part of the ongoing Joint Sea-2015 (II) exercise between the two countries from Aug 20 to 28.
The two navies deployed amphibious equipment and more than 400 marines, who landed on a beach using various methods, including parachuting and descending by rope from helicopters, as well as using amphibious armored vehicles and landing ships.
“For the first time, we shipped tanks and armored vehicles, and landed soldiers directly into an overseas drill area after a long-distance voyage,” said Liang Yang, assistant to the Chinese director of the drill.
“Such a drill will fully test the performance of our weapons in terms of adaptability to local weather and topographical conditions.”
More than 100 Chinese marines were transported directly onto the beach in 14 amphibious armored vehicles, which were unloaded from the Chinese landing ship Changbaishan, anchored more than 1 kilometer off the beach.
“This type of dry landing, which involves putting soldiers ashore without the need for wading, as they did previously, meets both our tactical demands and requirements for real-battle landing,” Liang said.
Another 24 Chinese marines landed by helicopter fast rope, while the Chinese landing vessel Yunwushan deployed six armored vehicles and 26 marines directly onto the beach.
The Chinese air force also took part in the drill with two J-10 and two JH-7A fighters, which took off from an airport in China and flew across Russian airspace before arriving at the drill area.
Chen Yong, a Chinese air force officer who took part in the drill, said, “The fighters were here mainly to assist the beach landings by commanding the air and launching long-distant attacks at targets on the beach.”
Russian soldier Andrey Ivanov, 30, who was taking part in a military exercise for the first time, said, “Although this drill was complicated and difficult, it went smoothly thanks to the thorough preparations on both sides.”
Dong Jun, Chinese navy deputy chief of staff, said such large-scale joint beach landings require careful planning and command.
The success of the drill demonstrates that both nations’ navies are capable of high-level cooperation
