China’s Defense Ministry released a statement announcing that China, Iran, and Russia will conduct the Security Belt-2024 joint maritime exercise from March 11th to 15th.
The exercise will be held in the Gulf of Oman, and the exercises are designed to increase maritime cooperation and ensure joint “safeguarding regional maritime security and stability.”
The statement said that the exercise is part of China’s annual plan and is based on the agreement of the three countries involved.
The three People’s Liberation Army Navy ships that make up the 45th Naval Escort Task Force will participate in the exercise. The vessels are the Type-052D CNS Urumqi, Type-054A CNS Linyi, and Type 903A Dongpinghu, which have been based in the area conducting anti-piracy missions since late October 2023.
