China sends aircraft to monitor US-Japan-France-Canada military exercises?

That was the assessment made by some Chinese experts on June 11, one day after the US 7th Fleet announced the four-country exercise, according to the Global Times .

According to the announcement of the 7th Fleet, two US aircraft carrier strike groups including the aircraft carriers USS Nimitz and USS Ronald Reagan operated with the Japanese helicopter destroyer JS Izumo, the French frigate FS Lorraine and the Canadian frigate HMCS Montreal in the Philippine Sea on June 9, in a coordinated exercise with the participation of more than 12,000 military personnel from 4 countries.

Ships from two US aircraft carrier strike groups, the Japan Self-Defense Force and the French Navy form a formation in the Philippine Sea on June 9.

According to the Global Times , the South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI), a Beijing-based organization, has been monitoring the joint exercise. SCSPI said on June 9 that two US aircraft carriers have been operating in the waters around the Ryukyu Islands (Japan) in the Philippine Sea since June 8.

This sea area, located east of Taiwan, has important strategic value in the Taiwan issue, because from there, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) can surround the island and prevent foreign military intervention efforts, according to the Global Times, citing a Chinese military expert who did not want to be identified.

Along with the four-way joint exercise, the Japanese Ministry of Defense confirmed that it had detected a PLA Y-9 reconnaissance aircraft operating over the Western Pacific on June 8. The Japanese side said in a press release that the Y-9 reconnaissance aircraft was different from the models previously detected, according to the Global Times .

As of June 10, Taiwan's Defense Ministry said it had detected 37 military aircraft and five PLA ships around Taiwan the previous day, including 26 J-11 and J-16 fighter jets, four H-6 bombers, two YU-20 refueling aircraft, two Y-9s and a WZ-7 unmanned reconnaissance aircraft flying to southeastern Taiwan, with the support of two KJ-500 early warning aircraft, according to the Global Times .

Based on the overlapping flight paths and locations, PLA reconnaissance aircraft likely monitored, supervised and collected intelligence on the aforementioned four-party joint exercise, and PLA bombers may have conducted drills targeting mock targets, according to the Global Times on June 11, citing several Chinese experts.

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