New Delhi, Oct 23 (IANS): Chinese and Russian naval forces have carried out their first joint sea patrol in waters in the west Pacific between October 17 to 23, Chinese Ministry of Defence said on Saturday, Global Times reported.

The patrol was held right after China and Russia wrapped up a joint naval exercise in the Sea of Japan from October 14 to 17.

A China-Russia joint naval ships formation which included a total of 10 warships and six carrier-based helicopters carried out the joint maritime patrol in the Sea of Japan, the West Pacific, and the East China Sea, during which they organised exercises over joint sailing and joint manoeuvres and conducted live-fire drills, the report said.

A statement from Russian Ministry of Defence said on Saturday during the practical actions, the battle ships sailed more than 1,700 nautical miles in total.

During the mission, the joint formation has strictly abided by international law and did not enter territorial waters of other countries, the Chinese Ministry of Defence said.

Global Times claimed Japanese media had hyped up the joint formation's passage through of the Tsugaru Strait, but Chinese military experts noted that the Tsugaru Strait is no territorial water, and warships from any country have the right to transit, which means the transit of the Chinese and Russian vessels were in line with the international law and well within the bounds of standard naval practices.