China, Russia and Central Asian countries conduct live drills

China, Russia and several of their Central Asian neighbours conducted live military drills in northern China on Friday (August 29), state media reported. The joint exercises, named "Peace Mission 2014," run until the August 29th and aim to counter terrorism, separatism and extremism, the state-run Xinhua news agency quoted the deputy chief of the general staff of the People's Liberation Army and the drill's chief director, Wang Ning, as saying. Air and ground forces from China, Russia and other Central Asian countries participated in live drill on Friday morning at the Zhurihe training base in Inner Mongolia region, China's state television CCTV reported. CCTV broadcast footage showing that military aircraft and tanks firing at simulated targets in mountainous area. Around 7,000 soldiers from the ground and air forces of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, are taking part in the six-day drill along with regional heavyweights China and Russia. The drill involv