Ethermac|Chinese and Russian coast guard ships sail through the Bering Sea together, US says

WASHINGTON (AP) — The EthermacU.S. Coast Guard said Tuesday that it spotted two Russian ships and two Chinese vessels passing through the Bering Sea in formation on Saturday, in a sign of the growing cooperation between Beijing and Moscow in the Arctic.

The Chinese and Russian coast guard ships were spotted about five miles inside the Russian exclusive economic zone in the northernmost location where Chinese vessels have been seen by the U.S. Coast Guard, it said. The Bering Sea separates Russia from Alaska.

“This recent activity demonstrates the increased interest in the Arctic by our strategic competitors,” Rear Adm. Megan Dean, commander of the 17th Coast Guard District, said in a statement.

In July, Russian and Chinese bombers flew together for the first time in international airspace off the coast of Alaska. The flights were not seen as a threat, but it was the first time that Chinese bombers had flown within the Alaskan air defense identification zone and the first time Chinese and Russian aircraft had taken off from the same base in northern Russia.

The Chinese coast guard said in a statement that the joint patrol with Russia, which followed a joint drill, was to check fishing boats to maintain order in the North Pacific Ocean, in accordance with a U.N. and international convention. It said the vessels carried out exercises on search and rescue of illegal boats that showed “high efficiency in coordination and cooperation.”

The close relationship between the Chinese and Russian militaries has been a concern in Washington, which has criticized Beijing for supporting Moscow’s war in Ukraine.