China kicks off naval drills

China has launched an annual naval exercise in the South China Sea focusing on anti-missile attack drills, the latest in a string of military activity which also included joint US-South Korean military drills. The ongoing naval exercise was an annual event. Last week, Chinese naval forces carried out drills in the disputed southern waters amid tension with Washington over security in the Korean peninsula and sensitive territorial disputes. Last year, there was a collision between sonar equipment being towed by a US Navy warship and a Chinese submarine near Philippine waters. Beijing is modernizing the military to rely more on advanced technology and less on the sheer manpower of its 2.3 million soldiers. But its increased defence spending has raised fears, especially in Washington and Tokyo, about a lack of transparency.