MOSCOW. Aug 9 (Interfax-AVN) - The Russian Defense Ministry on Friday rejected foreign media reports claiming that a large-scale Russian-Chinese exercise is scheduled for mid-August.
"The conduction of any operations related to joint training of military units and formations of the Russian Armed Forces and Chinese People's Liberation Army including those on anti-terrorist matters in Central Asia is not planned in the near future," the ministry's press service reported on Friday.
A press service official told Interfax-Military News Agency that "in the framework of implementing an agreement between the Russian and Chinese governments on the prevention of dangerous military activities, the year 2002 is to witness the conduction of joint radio training of Land Forces radio station crews, air traffic ground control points and plane crews of Russia's Siberian and China's Beijing districts."
The official stressed that "such training happens annually and is aimed at timely notification of the parties on force majeure circumstances that may emerge near the Russian-Chinese state border; it is not aimed at preparation of joint actions against any enemy."
Russia has similar agreements on the prevention of dangerous military activities with Canada, Greece, the United States and the Czech Republic.