A group of Chinese army personnel arrived in Belarus on July 6 to participate in a joint "anti-terrorist training," the Belarusian Defense Ministry reported.
The news comes days after Belarus, Moscow's key ally, joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization led by China and Russia. It focuses on Eurasian political, economic, security, and defense issues.
The exercises aim to "exchange experience, coordinate Belarusian and Chinese units, and create a foundation for the further development of Belarusian-Chinese relations in the field of joint training of troops," according to the ministry.
They will take place in Belarus on July 8-19.
Belarus has supported Russian aggression against Ukraine but has not committed its own troops to fight directly in Russia's war. Russian forces launched the all-out invasion of Ukraine from Belarus in early 2022 but suffered a defeat near Kyiv and were forced to pull back.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping on July 3 indicated his support for Russia on the subject of its full-scale war on Ukraine, saying on the sidelines of the summit that China "has always stood on the right side of history."
In what was the second meeting of Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the last two months, the leaders concurred that the bilateral relations were at a historical highpoint and jointly protect "regional tranquility and stability.
Although China officially maintains a neutral stance on Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine and denies providing lethal aid, Beijing and Moscow continue to strengthen their ties.
Various countries, including the U.S., have accused China of continuously aiding Russia's war machine in Ukraine by providing machine tools, weapons technology, satellite imagery, semiconductors, and other dual-use technologies.
Ana Palacio
