Overview of the Maritime Exercise Phase of the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2026" Joint Exercise

中俄“海上联合-二〇二六”联合演习海上演练阶段综述

PLA Daily (解放军报) 12 July 2026

Summary

The maritime phase of Joint Sea-2026 concluded July 11, with Chinese and Russian naval formations conducting unscripted, commander-driven drills in submarine rescue, maritime strike, and air defense across surface, subsurface, and air domains, including the destroyer Kaifeng and Russian missile cruiser Varyag executing coordinated fire against maritime and aerial targets. The exercise documents a concrete expansion of the Joint Sea format: the inclusion of submarines and submarine rescue vessels extends bilateral drills from a predominantly surface-focused format into a three-dimensional, subsurface-integrated posture, which the article explicitly frames as a deliberate progression rather than an anomaly. The post-exercise Pacific maritime joint patrol announced in the article extends operational coordination beyond the exercise itself and raises the question of which specific waters and transit routes the combined force will cover.

The article explicitly notes that submarines and submarine rescue vessels participated, marking a described expansion of Joint Sea exercises from surface-only to a three-dimensional surface-plus-subsurface format, and announces a follow-on maritime joint patrol into Pacific waters—an operational detail beyond routine exercise reporting.

Translation

On July 11, the maritime exercise phase of the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2026" joint exercise came to a close. During this maritime exercise, Chinese and Russian naval vessel formations conducted drills covering subjects including submarine rescue, maritime strike, and air defense and anti-missile operations. The two sides deepened mutual trust through efficient coordination, further enhanced joint operational capabilities, and consolidated and deepened their traditional friendly cooperative relationship.

The subjects of this maritime exercise were organized and implemented flexibly, with high requirements for operational coordination. The Chinese and Russian sides set no script; front-line commanders made on-the-spot decisions on formation maneuvering and fire distribution based on battlefield conditions, hydrological and meteorological factors, and other situational variables. At the same time, participating forces adopted a mixed formation mode, building a joint operational system (联合作战体系) relying on multiple platforms across surface, air, and submarine domains.

Looking back on these dozens of hours of maritime exercises, Chinese and Russian naval officers and sailors coordinated closely amid wind and waves, wove a tight aerial net (织密天网) through electromagnetic fog, and responded jointly when threats approached, effectively testing both sides' capabilities for joint reconnaissance and early warning, command coordination, and fire strike operations in complex electromagnetic environments.

In the maritime target strike exercise, Chinese and Russian fire coordination precisely destroyed the "enemy." "Russian side reports: 'enemy' maritime target detected!" After the formation arrived in a certain sea area, the Russian missile cruiser Varyag was first to detect the "enemy" situation, whereupon situational sharing, command coordination, and combined strike were immediately initiated. Chinese and Russian vessels successively conducted main-gun strikes against the maritime target, rapidly sinking it.

The maritime "enemy" situation had barely been resolved when the radar of the Kaifeng detected a group of small aerial targets flying toward the formation at close range. "Kaifeng rapidly occupies a favorable attack position to strike the target; Russian vessel conducts follow-up fire." After the commander issued the order, Kaifeng maneuvered at high speed and opened anti-air fire, while Russian vessels occupied a favorable attack sector to deliver supplementary strikes; the two sides jointly destroyed the incoming targets.

In the air defense and anti-missile exercise, Chinese and Russian vessels maintained a clear division of responsibilities and close coordination, fully leveraging the respective strengths of each weapons platform, and successfully engaged incoming targets in the shortest possible time, testing the joint operational capabilities of the Chinese-Russian maritime formation.

Personnel at the formation command post explained that through in-depth prior exchanges, participating forces developed a deeper understanding of each other's tactical objectives and operational intentions, enabling them to fully grasp each other's tactical actions during maritime operations and ultimately achieve good operational results.

Roman, a Russian officer serving as an observer aboard the Kaifeng, observed the entire organization and implementation of the exercise. He stated that the naval officers and sailors of both countries coordinated their tactical actions smoothly and that command at all levels was efficient. Faced with complex and changing maritime and air situations, both sides responded professionally and handled matters according to established procedures, fully demonstrating the high degree of mutual trust and high-level joint exercise capability of the two countries' navies.

Since 2012, the "Joint Sea" series of exercises has become an important platform for naval cooperation between China and Russia. In this exercise, both sides dispatched elite forces encompassing surface, subsurface, air, and support elements; in particular, the participation of submarines and submarine rescue vessels reflects the continuous expansion of the two navies' cooperation from "surface" to a three-dimensional, combat-realistic "surface plus subsurface" posture. "Joint Sea" has become a normalized (常态化), institutionalized (制度化), and combat-realistic (实战化) joint training brand for both China and Russia.

According to plan, after the exercise concludes, some forces from both sides will proceed to relevant waters of the Pacific Ocean to conduct a maritime joint patrol, continuing to make positive contributions to maintaining international and regional peace and stability.

The maritime exercise phase of the China-Russia "Joint Sea-2026" joint exercise has come to a close. In the future, both sides will continue to uphold the principles of openness, transparency, and mutual trust, continuously expanding the depth and breadth of joint training, and contributing greater strength to building a maritime community of shared future (海洋命运共同体) and maintaining world peace and stability.

Original Chinese

7月11日，中俄“海上联合-2026”联合演习海上演练阶段落下帷幕。此次海上演练，中俄舰艇编队围绕援潜救生、对海突击、防空反导等科目展开演练，双方在高效协同中深化互信，进一步提升了联合作战能力，巩固深化了传统友好合作关系。本次海上演练科目组织实施灵活，作战协同要求高，中俄双方不设脚本，由一线指挥员根据战场态势、水文气象等临机决断编队机动与火力分配。同时，参演兵力采取混合编组模式，依托海、空、潜多类平台搭建联合作战体系。回望这数十小时的海上演练，中俄海军官兵在风浪中紧密协同，在电磁迷雾中织密天网，在威胁来袭时携手应对，有效检验了双方在复杂电磁环境下的联合侦察预警、指挥协同和火力打击能力。在打击海上目标演练中，中俄双方火力协同精准破“敌”。“俄方通报，发现‘敌’海上目标！”编队抵达某海区后，俄“瓦良格”号导弹巡洋舰率先发现“敌”情，态势共享、指挥协同、合力打击随即展开，中俄双方舰艇依次对海上目标进行主炮打击，迅速将目标击沉。海上“敌”情刚刚解除，开封舰雷达就发现一批空中小目标向编队近飞。“开封舰快速占领有利攻击阵位打击目标，俄舰进行补射。”指挥员命令下达后，开封舰高速机动并展开对空射击，俄方舰艇占据有利攻击扇面补充打击，双方合力将来袭目标击毁。防空反导演练中，中俄双方舰艇分工明确、密切协同，充分发挥各自武器平台优长，在最短时间内成功抗击来袭目标，检验了中俄海上编队的联合作战能力。编队指挥所人员介绍，通过前期深入交流，参演兵力对对方的战术目的和作战意图有了更深理解，海上行动时能充分领会对方的战术动作，最终实现了良好的作战效果。在开封舰担任观察员的俄罗斯军官罗曼，全程观摩了演练的组织与实施。他表示，两国海军舰艇官兵战术动作协同顺畅，各级指挥高效。面对复杂多变的海空情况，双方应对专业、处置规范，充分展现出两国海军的高度互信与高水平联演能力。自2012年以来，“海上联合”系列演习已经成为中俄两国海军合作的重要平台。此次演习，双方派出精锐力量，兵力涵盖水面、水下、空中及保障力量，特别是潜艇和援潜救生船参演，反映出两国海军协作从“水面”向“水面+水下”立体实战持续拓展。“海上联合”已成为中俄双方常态化、制度化、实战化的联训品牌。根据计划，演练结束后，双方部分兵力还将赴太平洋相关海域组织海上联合巡航，持续为维护国际和地区和平稳定作出积极贡献。中俄“海上联合-2026”联合演习的海上演练阶段落下帷幕。未来，双方将继续秉持开放、透明、互信的原则，不断拓展联合训练的深度与广度，为构建海洋命运共同体、维护世界和平与稳定贡献更多力量。