Chinese and Belarussian troops practice seizing airport in drill near Ukrainian and Polish borders
Its criticism of China over the war in Ukraine also cited its “no-limits partnership” with Moscow and “large-scale support for Russia’s defence industrial base”.
Belarus has been a key supporter of Moscow’s war effort since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022 and it has agreed to store Russia tactical nuclear warheads on its territory.
Recently Belarus became the 10th full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a Eurasian security bloc touted by China and Russia as an alternative to Western-led military groups.
China has called for direct peace talks between Russia and Ukraine in recent weeks, but Beijing has never condemned the invasion and has deepened its ties with Moscow since the start of the war.
The exercise, which is the first time Chinese troops have been to Belarus for training, started on Monday last week and ended on Friday, according to the Belarusian defence ministry.
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A more detailed account of the exercise was published on Thursday by the Chinese defence ministry, which said in a post on its WeChat account that the troops had demonstrated “good technical and tactical skills, solid training levels, and a strong fighting spirit”.
The Chinese commander, Wang Bo, said the two sides had practised “encircling, controlling and pursuing” their targets and refined their reconnaissance and blockade tactics.
The joint air-ground combat exercise simulating an operation to seize control of an airport from terrorists using drones, paratroopers and ground forces was held on Wednesday.
The report said the exercise had proceeded “smoothly” as a result of the “seamless coordination”, “solid training” and “high level of trust” between the two sides.