The China-Russia "Exercise Joint Sea-2024" concluded on Wednesday in waters near Zhanjiang City of south China's Guangdong Province.
The six-day exercise, focusing on "joint response to maritime security threats," saw the participation of seven vessels from both countries.
The event began with port planning activities, including on-map military simulation and ship tours.
When the exercise moved to the sea phase from Monday, live drills were carried out on joint reconnaissance and early warning, search and rescue, air defense and missile defense.
"In the drill, Chinese and Russian fleets successively carried out several combat-based exercises, such as joint reconnaissance and early warning as well as actual use of weapons, in a mixed formation with alternative command. Under the efficient commanding from both command posts and close cooperation between fleets, we've overcome the impacts of poor weather and showcased strong military accomplishment of two navies, with the drill achieving expected training goals," said Xu Wenke, an officer of the Chinese fleet.
During the sea phase, the fleets also organized joint anti-submarine and anchorage defense exercises, fully testing the tactical command coordination and joint operation capabilities of the two sides.
"The fleet has overcome several adverse factors, such as rough sea and complex sea condition, to coordinate and cooperation with the Russian fleet. We then located the targets in water quickly and completed the rescue mission right away," said Chen Qian, an officer of the Chinese fleet.
After the conclusion of all the scheduled exercises, the fleets held a fleet separation ceremony.
"This military drill has strengthened military exchanges, cultural exchanges and mutual understanding between the navies of China and Russia. With careful organization, thorough implementation and close coordination, officers and soldiers of the two countries successfully completed all the scheduled exercises, which has promoted the standardization and systematization of bilateral practical cooperation," said Zheng Hesheng, commander of the Chinese fleet.
Since its inception in 2012, the "Joint Sea" series has become a major platform for cooperation between the two navies, enhancing their ability to jointly address security threats and challenges.
China-Russia joint maritime exercise concludes
Reciprocal tariffs imposed by the United States violate World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and undermine both the country's domestic economy and the global economy at large, said Philippe Monnier, former executive director of the Greater Geneva Berne Area Economic Development Agency, during an interview Friday.
Amid widespread opposition, U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order on so-called reciprocal tariffs, imposing a 10-percent minimum baseline tariff and higher rates on certain trading partners.
Highlighting the principles of the WTO, Monnier emphasized the importance of adhering to established mechanisms for resolving trade disputes instead of resorting to unilateral actions.
"Based on the WTO rules, you have to follow the most-favored-nation principle and it is not the same as reciprocal tariffs. The other thing is that if you have some disagreement, you should not take some unilateral decision. There are some specific dispute mechanisms, and you have to use those mechanisms if you disagree," he said.
The economist warned of the far-reaching negative consequences of imposing high tariffs, citing historical examples and the potential disruptions to global trade and economic growth.
"You will find a lot of negative consequences. First, you will see there will be higher prices. Of course, there will be retaliation from most countries, and it will be the start of a trade war. And then the global chain will be disrupted. It will be very complicated to buy components including, for instance, components from Germany that you import to manufacture American cars. Eventually you we will have a very bad allocation of assets. In history, there are a lot of examples of countries which tried to protect themselves with very high tariffs. But eventually those countries had a very negative economic growth. And I think that this will not only impact the USA, it will impact every country. But probably even more the USA than other countries because they will have less competition and they will start to make things that other countries can do better than themselves, including of course China," he said.
Monnier stressed the potential global trade shifts that could arise from U.S. isolationism, predicting closer economic cooperation between Europe and China as countries seek alternative partnerships.
"If the USA starts to be more and more isolated, naturally, the trading partners will start to find new trading partners. And China and Europe will have an incentive to cooperate more. Maybe there will be a sort of free trade agreement between China and the European Union. We already have one between Switzerland and China, but it could be expanded to the European Union. So yes, definitely it will encourage new trading routes. Certainly, Europe cannot export as much as before to the USA. They will try to find other solutions and definitely China is one of them," he said.
US reciprocal tariffs risk WTO rule violation, global economic fallout: expert
