China, Russia Deploy Submarines Together for First Time

China and Russia deployed submarines together for the first time in the 14-year history of their joint naval exercises, a milestone that Chinese state media called a sign of "extremely high" mutual trust — and one that has already prompted a formal diplomatic protest from Japan.

Submarines Joined Yellow Sea Drills

The Joint Sea-2026 exercise ran July 6–13 in the Yellow Sea off Qingdao, Shandong. For the first time since the series began in 2012, a Chinese Type 039B submarine and Russia's Improved Kilo-class submarine Ufa took part together, with footage from July 11 showing the vessels sailing side by side.

Ten ships plus two submarines participated overall, including the Russian cruiser Varyag, frigate Rezkiy, and rescue ship Igor Belousov. The drills covered submarine rescue, maritime strike, air defense, and anti-missile operations.

Trust Framing From Chinese Analysts

Chinese naval expert Wang Yunfei described the submarines operating together as "extremely rare," reflecting what he called "an extremely high level of mutual trust" between the two navies — a characterization carried by Chinese state media and Russia's TASS.

The Pentagon and US Indo-Pacific Command declined to comment when asked about the exercise, a notably muted response from Washington given the scale of the milestone being described.

Live-Fire Drill Triggers Japanese Protest

The cooperation extended beyond the formal Joint Sea exercise. On July 19, the Chinese destroyer Kaifeng conducted a live-fire gunnery drill roughly 180 kilometers southwest of Okinotorishima, alongside destroyer Anshan, a supply ship, and the Russian frigate Rezkiy.

Japan's Joint Staff publicly disclosed the drill — marking the first time Tokyo has publicly revealed a foreign live-fire exercise within its claimed exclusive economic zone. A Joint Staff spokesman said: "The Chinese vessel fired a machine gun toward the target."

Tokyo Lodges Formal Protest

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara confirmed Japan lodged a diplomatic protest over the drill and said the government would "continue to monitor the movements of Chinese and Russian naval vessels in the waters surrounding Japan with concern."

China rejected the protest outright, arguing Okinotorishima is a reef rather than an island and therefore not entitled to generate an exclusive economic zone under international law — a long-standing dispute between the two countries over the tiny outcrop's legal status.

Analysts Offer Mixed Assessment

Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, speaking at the Farnborough Airshow on July 20, confirmed Chinese and Russian naval vessels are "conducting joint navigation operations in the waters surrounding Japan."

Lyle Goldstein, Director of Asia Engagement at Defense Priorities, offered a more measured take, suggesting the drills are partly "a reaction to larger drills that are often undertaken by the US and its allies," while calling the submarine rescue component of the exercise "notable." US Ambassador to Japan George Glass separately criticized China's concurrent submarine-launched ballistic missile test, which coincided with the opening day of Joint Sea-2026.

Broader Pattern Of Coordinated Patrols

The submarine deployment and subsequent live-fire drill were followed by a joint Pacific patrol involving vessels from both navies, extending the visible cooperation well beyond the initial exercise window. Japan's Ministry of Defense has continued tracking the movements of both fleets since the drills concluded, part of a broader pattern of heightened surveillance Tokyo has maintained around joint Chinese-Russian naval activity in recent years.

The series has grown steadily in scale and complexity since its 2012 debut, and this year's submarine milestone follows a pattern of incremental escalation in which each iteration of Joint Sea has introduced a new category of coordinated capability, from surface combat drills to, now, undersea operations conducted side by side.

TheTrendsWire's Take

Chinese state media's "extremely high mutual trust" framing is doing a lot of work here, and it's worth remembering that framing comes almost entirely from Chinese sources rather than independent Western analysis — the actual Western reaction on record is notably thin, limited mostly to Japan's formal protest and one defense analyst's relatively measured comment. The Pentagon's silence is arguably more informative than anything either side said publicly: either Washington doesn't see this as a major escalation worth commenting on, or it's choosing not to give the milestone the attention Chinese state media clearly wants it to receive.

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