AFP / AFX, BEIJING: China and Russia are to hold rare joint military exercises involving up to 8,000 service personnel from Aug 18-26, the Global Times reported, citing Russian media reports.
'Peace Mission 2005' will involve China's army, navy and air force, while Russia will dispatch its navy and air force, it said.
China's Defense Ministry has not announced the exercises. But Russian President Vladimir Putin said last Thursday during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao that joint exercises will take place later this year.
According to the Global Times, which is run by the official People's Daily, final arrangements for the exercises were agreed on July 1, when Major General Qian Lihua of China's Defense Ministry visited Moscow.
The paper said the joint maneuvers will begin Aug 18-19, when the two sides hold military and political consultations at chief of staff level near Russia's Pacific Fleet headquarters at Vladivostok.
From Aug 20-22 the exercises will move to the Yellow Sea and the area off the Jiaodong peninsula in eastern China's Shandong province, it said.
These exercises will involve China's army, air force and navy, and Russian paratroppers who will jump on to the peninsula, while Russian ships engage in amphibious landing exercises, it said.
Air force exercises involving Sukhoi Su-27 figher planes and Tupolev TU 95MSs and TU 22M-3s will round off the drills on Aug 23-26, with long-distance bombing runs and cruise missile attacks, it said.
The exercises could also involve China's nuclear submarine fleet and anti-submarine warfare, the Global Times said.
