Strengthen "mutual trust" between the two countries. This is the spirit that guided the naval exercise "Joint Sea 2024" between the Chinese and Russian navies, which concluded in the last few hours. The training took place in the Dragon's territorial waters, off the coast of the port city of Zhanjiang in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong.

The maneuver involved a total of seven Chinese and Russian military naval units. The operations were conducted over six days in the waters of the South China Sea, in an area not disputed with other countries. The goal of the training was to create a "joint response to maritime security threats".

Nothing strange. In fact, China and Russia have regularly conducted joint operations for over ten years. After the Russian military invasion in Ukraine, however, these maneuvers take on a different value: Beijing and Moscow aim to strengthen their "friendship", for the West it is a "threat". So much so that the Atlantic Alliance has repeatedly expressed "deep concern" over China's alleged indirect assistance to Russia in Ukraine.