China and Singapore Start Joint Naval Drills as Beijing Boosts Ties in Asia

South China Morning Post

24 February 2021

Beijing is moving to get its efforts to boost defence ties with its Southeast Asian neighbours back on track, with the start of a joint exercise yesterday between the Chinese and Singapore navies. The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted some of China’s plans for greater military engagement in the region, aimed at countering the growing US challenge to Beijing’s claims of sovereignty in the South China Sea. In a short statement, the Chinese defence ministry said the drill with the Singapore navy would include joint search and rescue, as well as communication exercises. The drill is part of a 2019 agreement to deepen military ties between the two countries, which last conducted a joint naval drill in 2016. The agreement includes more high-level dialogue, academic and think tank exchanges, as well as an increase in the scale of existing bilateral exercises. Dr Collin Koh, a maritime security analyst with RSIS, said China was making up ground. He pointed out that forces in most Southeast Asian countries had been heavily involved in pandemic control, reducing the potential for joint military exercises with China. “Even if China is keen to engage in more intense defence diplomacy, the Southeast Asian partners have to be similarly willing and enthused about it,” Koh said. The exercise between China and Singapore covered only the basic elements common in drills with the US and other partners such as Thailand, but was a sign that Beijing was consolidating its ties with Southeast Asia, he added.

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Last updated on 06/05/2021