China will send seven naval ships including a destroyer and a frigate, along with fighter jets and other aircraft, Yang said.

Russia's contingent will include surface vessels, submarines and fixed wing aircraft, he said, adding that both sides will dispatch ship-borne helicopters and marines.

The drills come as Beijing and Moscow intensify cooperation in military, political and economic spheres.  ..

In May they conducted their first joint naval exercises in European waters in the Black Sea and Mediterranean. It was China's farthest ever naval exercise from its home waters.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin hold frequent summits and their countries, both permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, often take similar stances there on divisive issues such as the conflict in Syria.

The waters of the Peter the Great Gulf,  ..