A worker stands in a meeting hall in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, October 28, 2021, with an ASEAN flag. JAKARTA, December 4, Reuters - Russia and the Association of Southeast Asian nations concluded their first joint naval exercise on Saturday, Indonesia's navy said on Saturday, as the region faces rising tensions with China.
The three-day exercise off the coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island aimed at increasing interoperability between the ASEAN member states and the Russian navy in the strategic maritime area. It comes amid rising tensions between major powers in the South China SeaChina Sea, a resource-rich waterway of geopolitical significance.
The navy said the exercise has a strategic impact because it is intended to cultivate friendships between the Indonesian government, ASEAN countries and Russia.
The two-stage drills involved eight warships and four aircraft from Malaysia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and Brunei.
Aleksei Bolotnikov, commander of Russian warship Admiral Panteleyev, was quoted as saying he hoped the next ASEAN-Russia exercise could take place in Vladivostok.
Russia and the Southeast Asian bloc held their fourth summit online in October, a meeting that coincided with the anniversary of relations between Russia and the 10 member regional grouping.
Philippine Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin urged China last month to back off after three Chinese coast guard vessels blocked and used a water cannon on resupply boats headed for a Philippine-occupied atoll in the South China SeaChina Sea.
China says the territory falls within its nine-dash line a boundary, including almost all the South China SeaChina Sea, which a tribunal in the Hague found lacked a legal basis in 2016.