Russia, China, Iran stage military drills in Mideast waters Maritime Security Belt-2024

Russian, Chinese and Iranian warships have fired at surface and air targets as part of the Maritime Security Belt-2024 exercise in the Gulf of Oman.

"The warships of the three countries performed firing from large-calibre machine guns and small-calibre shipboard artillery at surface and air targets imitating unmanned marine and aircraft," Caliber.Az reports, citing a report by the Russian Defence Ministry.

"Today, the participants of the exercise will have to work out an episode on the release of a ship seized by pirates with the involvement of helicopters and landing of inspection teams," the ministry added.

The war games starting on March 12 coincide with heightened tensions in the region as Israel’s war on Gaza rages for a sixth month and Yemen’s Houthi rebels have launched attacks on ships in the Red Sea in response.

Russia’s defence ministry said the exercises that will run through Friday and involve warships and aviation would focus on the protection of “maritime economic activity”.

For its part, China’s defence ministry said the drills – called “Maritime Security Belt – 2024” – were aimed at “jointly maintaining regional maritime security”.

Iranian state media, meanwhile, reported that the exercise’s goal is to strengthen “the security of international maritime trade, combating piracy and maritime terrorism”, among others.

The drills come as a United States-led naval coalition has been operating in Red Sea waters since December 2023 trying to counter the Houthi attacks.

Separately, some 20,000 troops from 13 NATO members are conducting drills in the north of new member Sweden as well as its neighbours Finland and Norway.

The Nordic exercise is part of wider exercises called Steadfast Defender 24, the largest in decades for the US-led military alliance, with up to 90,000 troops taking part over several months.