Russia and China Conduct Joint Naval Drills
The Spin
Establishment-critical narrative
The Joint Sea-2026 drills are a legitimate, defensive exercise between two sovereign nations focused on search-and-rescue, anti-submarine warfare and air defense. These annual exercises have been routine since 2012 and are explicitly aimed at maintaining regional peace and stability. Framing normal military cooperation as a threat says more about Western anxiety than about any actual aggression.
Pro-establishment narrative
China-Russia naval drills are happening while Russia wages war on Ukraine and while reports confirm Russian troops secretly trained in China. The two sides practiced destroying an "enemy" submarine days after Trump repositioned nuclear submarines to counter Russian provocations. Calling this peacekeeping is a stretch when one partner is actively fighting a land war in Europe.
