The two countries have officially completed a five-day comprehensive joint drill at sea. The event underscores the ongoing efforts of both countries to strengthen practical military cooperation and contribute to the peace and stability of the region, as they completed all the scheduled exercises.

The bilateral exercise was carried out in the waters and airspace around the city of Zhanjiang in Guangdong Province in the south of China, and is the fifth of this type of exercise for the two navies. It was cleverly broken down into two separate parts: in-port diplomatic activities and tactical drills at sea.

In the first in-port period, defense officials arranged visits by ships, met with top officials and made advanced planning talks. During the latter maritime phase, the participating forces performed eight drills. These exercises consisted of formation maneuvers, aerial photography, at-sea replenishment, communications exercises, and joint search and rescue.

The officials from the Ministry of National Defense of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) pointed out that the routine joint exercises have contributed greatly to the improvement of mutual trust. Both navies are pushing for more practical cooperation, thus improving their capability to work together to contribute to regional security under the umbrella of wider diplomacy under the MFA of the People’s Republic of China.

Chinese military expert Zhang Junshe also noted high practical value of joint search-and-rescue drills, considering that the South China Sea is a seaway heavily used by ships and has complicated weather conditions. In addition, he pointed out, the exercises and underway replenishments have a direct impact on the combat readiness of the fleets taking part.

The maritime drills between Singapore and China were first initiated in the year 2015. Since then, joint naval exercises have taken place regularly between the military forces of both the nations. In the month of May 2025, the Chinese Navy dispatched a guided-missile frigate and a mine countermeasure ship to Singapore for holding joint exercise.

The military synergy is ongoing, and it is in line with Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ diplomatic stability agenda. In addition to its official cooperation with Singapore, The State Council of the People’s Republic of China is still allowing regular military exercises and tactical training with other regional neighbors such as Thailand and Cambodia.