Multinational naval exercises titled “Will for Peace 2026” officially commenced on January 10 in South Africa’s territorial waters, marking a new phase of maritime cooperation among a diverse group of participating states. The start of the drills was confirmed by the Russian Embassy in South Africa through an official statement released on Friday.
According to the embassy, the exercises are being conducted from Simon’s Town, the historic headquarters and principal operational base of the South African Navy. Located near Cape Town, Simon’s Town has long served as a strategic maritime hub for South Africa and a regular port of call for foreign naval vessels engaged in joint training and goodwill visits.
The embassy stated that the drills involve naval forces from China and South Africa, with Russia and Iran also contributing warships to the exercise. The primary focus of “Will for Peace 2026,” the statement said, is on maritime security and the promotion of safe navigation, themes that have become increasingly prominent amid rising global maritime competition and persistent security challenges along major sea lanes.
Photographs released alongside the statement showed a Russian Steregushchiy-class corvette, identified by hull number 545, berthed at Simon’s Town Naval Base. The vessel was seen moored alongside South African and Chinese naval units ahead of the opening ceremony. In the images, South African naval personnel were assembled on the pier, formally marking the launch of the multinational drills.
While the South African Navy has not yet issued a detailed public briefing on the exercise, officials confirmed that the activities are taking place within South Africa’s territorial waters and under the direction of national authorities. No specific information has been released regarding the total number of participating ships, aircraft, or personnel, nor the precise sequence of training events planned over the course of the drills.
Historically, maritime exercises conducted from Simon’s Town typically include a mix of navigation training, ship-handling maneuvers, communications drills, and coordinated patrol operations. Such activities are designed to improve interoperability between participating navies and to enhance their ability to operate together in complex maritime environments.
China has participated in previous naval exercises with South Africa and Russia, most notably during trilateral maritime drills held off South Africa’s east coast in recent years. Those exercises drew international attention as symbols of deepening defense ties among the three countries. South Africa last hosted multinational naval drills involving China and Russia in 2023, underscoring a pattern of recurring cooperation.
The inclusion of Iran in the 2026 iteration represents a notable development. Iranian naval vessels have increasingly conducted long-range deployments and port visits in Africa as part of Tehran’s broader effort to expand its naval presence and diplomatic engagement beyond the Middle East. Iran’s participation in “Will for Peace 2026” reflects this growing outreach and its interest in multilateral maritime engagement.
South African officials have previously emphasized that such exercises are non-aligned and defensive in nature, aimed at skills development rather than signaling hostility toward any third party. Nonetheless, multinational drills involving China, Russia, and Iran often attract scrutiny from Western governments, particularly in the context of broader geopolitical tensions and competing visions of maritime order.
The launch of “Will for Peace 2026” highlights deepening maritime coordination among China, Russia, Iran, and South Africa, and underscores South Africa’s continued role as a convening platform for multinational naval cooperation in the southern hemisphere. As the drills progress, they are expected to further test interoperability among the participating navies while reinforcing political and military ties among the involved states.
