CHITA, Russia (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin is inspecting a week-long military exercise in eastern Siberia that involves around 300,000 troops and is being billed as Russia's biggest-ever.

Speaking at a firing range in the Chita region on Thursday, Putin lauded the troops for their "high-level" performance and insisted the war games are not targeted at any other country.

Putin said Russia is a "peaceful nation" that "does not have any aggressive plans."

The maneuvers span vast expanses of Siberia and the Far East, the Arctic and the Pacific Oceans. In addition to the troops, some 1,000 Russian aircraft are also involved.

Chinese troops have joined the Russians.

The Chinese media have described the People's Liberation Army involvement in the drills as the country's largest-ever dispatch of forces abroad for war games.