China and Russia launch 'Joint Sea-2026' naval drills off Qingdao
The annual China-Russia naval exercise kicked off on July 6 at the Chinese port of Qingdao with warships and submarines from both fleets, timed to coincide with China's first submarine-launched ballistic missile test since 1982 and the NATO summit in Ankara
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Summary
China and Russia opened the annual "Joint Sea-2026" naval exercise on July 6 at the port of Qingdao in Shandong province, deploying warships and submarines from both fleets into the Yellow Sea. The exercise ran concurrently with China's test-launch of a submarine-launched ballistic missile into the South Pacific, the first such test since 1982, and opened the day before the NATO summit in Ankara. China state media confirmed the exercise name and location without disclosing ship counts or the duration of drills. The back-to-back timing of the SLBM test and the naval exercise with Russia was noted by analysts and regional governments as a deliberate joint signalling moment directed at the NATO gathering and at Pacific-rim states already protesting the missile test.
The split
CGTN presents Joint Sea-2026 as a routine, stabilising exercise with no reference to strategic timing. International-relations analysts and Western-aligned outlets read the simultaneous SLBM test as a deliberate package, arguing the pairing was designed to demonstrate the reach of the China-Russia alignment at the exact moment NATO was convening to address both. Neither Chinese nor Russian officials acknowledged any connection between the exercise and the Ankara summit.
By the numbers
- July 6, date the exercise kicked off at Qingdao
- 11th, approximate count of the annual Joint Sea exercise series between China and Russia
- 2, events running simultaneously with the drills: China SLBM test + NATO Ankara summit opening July 7
Why it matters
Joint Sea-2026 adds a naval dimension to the China-Russia alignment at a moment when NATO is formally discussing China as a threat and the SLBM test has drawn protests from the US, Japan, Australia, and Pacific island states. The exercise keeps Russian naval assets in the Yellow Sea, a positioning that also keeps Japanese and South Korean forces focused on the north while the broader Pacific reacts to the missile test.
What to watch
- Whether the exercise extends to the Pacific or stays confined to the Yellow Sea
- Any joint bomber or submarine patrols announced alongside the naval drills
- NATO's official communique language on the China-Russia partnership, expected at Ankara July 8