China to Strengthen Military Cooperation with Southeast Asia through Joint Drills

China will host the "Aman Youyi 2023" military drills with five Southeast Asian countries, including Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, in an effort to deepen military mutual trust and enhance counterterrorism capabilities. The exercises, focusing on land and marine operations, will be held in Zhanjiang, China. This comes amid heightened tensions over territorial disputes in the South China Sea, with Vietnam and Malaysia contesting some of China's claims. The drills aim to maintain regional peace and stability, but the Philippines, which has clashed with China over South China Sea rights, will not be participating.