This Thursday, Supreme Commander-in-Chief Vladimir Putin flew from Vladivostok to Zabaykalsky Krai to attend the largest military maneuvers in the history of modern Russia, Vostok-2018. The Chinese and Mongolian militaries also took part in the maneuvers.
I'd like to focus on the Chinese. Previously, we mostly used to train together at sea be it the Baltic, Mediterranean, Okhotsk, South China, or the Japanese Sea. But recently, the Chinese warriors have started to cooperate with us on the ground and in the air. This August, more than 3,000 Chinese soldiers took part in the SCO Peace Mission 2018 conducted in Chelyabinsk Oblast. This September, a larger group of Chinese soldiers, 3,500 soldiers with their heavy vehicles and aviation have arrived in Zabaykalsky Krai. In practice, that means we're becoming brothers in arms with China in the context of the common threats we're both aware of.
Another important detail 300,000 Russian soldiers are taking part in the maneuvers. Such a large group can't be deployed in the European part of Russia due to some existing international restrictions. But in case of a severe crisis, our Armed Forces must be capable of coordinating at the macro level. In this case, the location of the training site is irrelevant.
Our military correspondent Alexander Sladkov with the details.
The Telimba range is the largest and most promising in Russia from the perspective of the Aerospace and Air Defense Forces. Here, one can learn to repel any attack of any scale, caliber, and capability.
The setup: An enemy attacked crucial Russian facilities from space. A classic scenario. The AA-missile troops went first. Here's what anti-aircraft defense looks like. The Tor, Buk, S-300, S-400, and Pantsir-S AA-missile systems are fighting 30 target-missiles.
Alexander Agafonov, Aerospace Forces: "More than 30 air targets were employed in the attack. They were imitated by target-missiles as well as an actual cruise missile launched from a carrier aircraft".
However, the main action was happening 90 miles from Chita at the Tsugol range. 25,000 soldiers, 7,000 combat vehicle units, and 250 aircraft, including Chinese ones, took part in the combined arms exercise. It was a battle Russia and China fought shoulder to shoulder.
Ivan Buvaltsev, Main Department of Operational Training: "Together with our Chinese colleagues, we've shown that we're capable of cooperating on combat training missions".
The scale of the Vostok-2018 maneuvers was astonishing. A 2,500 mile-long front line 18 ranges and 3 seas 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 tanks and armored vehicles 1,000 units of aircraft, artillery systems, and AA-missile systems.
Russia announced the maneuvers in advance. A group of military attaches was assembled to observe the maneuvers. All of them are Russian Army Specialists. How can we determine the scale of the Vostok-2018 maneuvers? Take the number of reporters here, for instance. 300 media representatives from all around the world have registered here, in Tsugol.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived at Tsugol to watch the active phase of the maneuvers and stayed to personally review the troops. It took 20 minutes for the 2 mile-long column of Russian and Chinese vehicles to drive past the stands. The Chinese generals admitted that they were amazed by the active phase at Tsugol and the parade.
Shao Yuanming, Joint Staff Department of CMC: "During the maneuvers the Chinese and Russian soldiers were training shoulder-to-shoulder on a common ground. We strengthened our friendship and mutual trust; expanded our cooperation and ensured peace".
That's the scale of the Vostok-2018 maneuvers. Recently, we were in Chita at the Tsugol range, but now, we're on the Japanese Sea sailing on a large hydrographic boat, the Alexey Anashkin, towards the Bamburovo range. The Klerk range, a three hours sail from there. The journalists watched Russian marines deploy onto the beach and capture a foothold.
The maneuvers are over. The military will work on the discovered flaws while the diplomats will assess the reaction of our friends and opponents.
Alexander Sladkov, Pavel Vydrin, and Oleg Dubinin Vesti: News of the Week, the Far East.
