Chinese Senior Colonel Shi Zhigang said on Tuesday that the joint military exercises between China and Russia are making soldier-to-soldier communication more frequent.
Shi said, "In the past, China-Russia joint exercises gave much more attention to the communications between commanders of the two sides, but this time there are more programs involving the exchanges between soldiers."
The military exercises called China-Russia Joint Sea-2016, is held in the eastern waters off Zhanjiang, Guangdong's southernmost city. It is also the location of the Chinese Navy's Nanhai Fleet headquarters.
Exercises included shooting drills and crossing barriers in simulated beachhead fights and damage control training program that simulated emergency leaks and fires on a warship.
Lieutenant Colonel Ren Kai, a commander in charge of the damage control training, said, "Damage-control training is important because what the crews learn about fighting leaks and fires can give warships a second life."
"The two navies have already carried out drills in the country's North and East seas, and it's natural that we should have exercises in the South China Sea," Shi said.
This is the first time that the annual exercises are held in the South China Sea. The commander said that critics should not misinterpret the motives behind the location of the exercises.
Shi said that it the exercises are in line with the duty of China's military to protect "every inch of national territory."
The joint military exercises also raised questions when they were held at the Mediterranean Sea.
A Russian military expert said, "Those are waters where the Chinese are newcomers, and at the time our joint activity there also raised eyebrows."
Li Xing, director of the Eurasian Studies Center at Beijing Normal University, said, "The fact that China and Russia are hosting military exercises jointly shows that the two countries have a very high level of mutual trust."