On October 22, China and ASEAN held their first joint maritime naval exercise, the “Joint Maritime Exercise-2018” in Zhanjiang city, Guangdong. This is the first multinational joint exercise organised after the establishment of the PLA Southern Theatre Command making it very significant. The opening ceremony held at Ma Xie Naval Base was attended by representatives of all 11 countries and the Singaporean Naval Chief Rear Admiral Lew Chuen Hong and Commander of the PLA Southern Theatre Vice Admiral Yuan Yubai delivered speeches. Participating forces from China and ASEAN mainly include 8 warships, 3 helicopters and about 1200 officers.
