China, Russia and Iran to conduct joint naval exercises in the Gulf of Oman

The naval forces of China, Iran and Russia -- countries at odds with the United States -- are conducting joint drills in the Gulf of Oman this week, China's Defense Ministry said on Tuesday.

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Other countries are also participating in the Security Bond 2023 exercises, the ministry said, without giving details. Iran, Pakistan, Oman and the United Arab Emirates have coasts along a body of water at the mouth of the strategic Persian Gulf.

"This exercise will help to deepen practical cooperation between the navies of the participating countries.. and to bring positive energy to peace and stability in the region," the department said in a statement. US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday the White House was not concerned about the joint drills.Kirby said the US and other countries were conducting drills all the time, and it wasn't the first time Russians and Chinese were training together.

"We will monitor this, we will monitor this to ensure there are no threats to our national security interests or the interests of our allies and partners in the region of this exercise," Kirby told CNN. "But nations train.We always do. We'll look at it as best we can." The exercise, scheduled for Wednesday-Sunday, comes amid rising tensions between the United States and China over various issues, including China's refusal to criticize Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine and Russia's economy continue to support.

The United States and its allies condemned the invasion, imposed punitive economic sanctions on Russia, and provided Ukraine with defensive weapons. Iran and the United Statesthey have been opponents since the founding of the Islamic Republic in 1979 and the kidnapping of American diplomats.

China has deployed the guided missile destroyer Nanning to participate in sea search and rescue exercises and other non-combat missions. China maintains its only foreign military base with a naval dock in the Horn of Africa country of Djibouti, across the Gulf of Oman.

The three countries conducted similar exercises over the past year and 2019, underscoring China's growing military and political ties with nations that the United States and its partners largely shun. Last week, China hosted talks between Iran and its main Middle East rival, Saudi Arabia, which resulted in an agreement between the two on Friday to restore full diplomatic ties after seven years of tensions.

While UThe South and Saudi Arabia have long-standing military and political ties, and ties have deteriorated since the 2018 assassination of American journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a critic of the kingdom's leadership, and production cuts by the OPEC+ oil cartel, which the government has said is threatening Russia helped. China's behavior in the Saudi-Iranian talks has placed it in an unusual role as a mediator in regional disputes, which Beijing appears to be exploiting as part of President Xi Jinping's "Global Security Initiative."

The country's special envoy for the Horn of Africa Xue Bing on Tuesday "reiterated China's willingness to work with countries in the region to contribute to peaceful regional development and build a closer Sino-African community with a shared future" through the Realizing the perspective," the official Xinhua News Agency quoted him as saying in a statement during a visit to Ethiopia.

China opposes "geopolitical competition by external forces (and) has no intention and will not seek to fill the so-called vacuum or create exclusive blocs." said Xue.