The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said that a group of Russian and Chinese military aircraft entered and left the air defense identification zone between 11:52 a.m. and 1:49 p.m. on June 6 (local time).
JCS said the Russian and Chinese aircraft did not violate its airspace.
According to Yonhap news agency, the entry of Russian and Chinese military aircraft into the Korean air defense identification zone occurred after South Korea, the United States and Japan emphasized their commitment to strengthening trilateral security cooperation on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue (an annual security conference in Singapore) last weekend.
Russian Tu-95 strategic bomber and Chinese H-6 bomber. Photo: Joongang Ilbo
Meanwhile, Reuters reported that China and Russia conducted a joint air patrol over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea on June 6.
This is the sixth joint patrol between China and Russia since 2019, conducted in the context of increasing military cooperation between Beijing and Moscow.
A statement from the Chinese Ministry of National Defense on June 6 stated that this patrol is part of the annual cooperation framework between the two countries' militaries.
The most recent joint air patrol between China and Russia was in November 2022. Specifically, Russian aircraft, including Tu-95MS strategic bombers, conducted joint patrols with Chinese Xian H-6K bombers over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.
At that time, Japan and South Korea dispatched fighter jets and expressed concerns to Russia and China through diplomatic channels.
Images from a US RC-135 spy plane show a Chinese J-16 flying at very close range. Photo: US Navy
During a patrol in May 2022, Chinese and Russian fighter jets approached Japanese airspace as Tokyo hosted a Quad summit with leaders of the US, India and Australia.
The move alarmed Japan, although China stressed the patrol was not aimed at a third party.
Reuters said China's growing assertiveness in the region has caused concern among its neighbors as well as their Western allies.
Since last week, the US, Japanese and Philippine coast guards have been holding their first trilateral naval exercise in the South China Sea. The exercise is in waters off the Philippine province of Bataan, lasting from June 1 to June 7.
Over the weekend, a Chinese warship came within 137 meters of the US destroyer USS Chung-Hoon in the Taiwan Strait, while the US and Canadian navies conducted joint exercises there.
Not long ago, a video showed a Chinese J-16 aircraft flying over a US RC-135 spy plane in the East Sea.
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