Japan scrambled for jets after the fighters approached their airspace while the Quad leaders were meeting in Tokyo.
Russian and Chinese military planes conducted joint exercises near Japan on Tuesday while the leaders of Group of four countries Japan’s defense minister said he was meeting in Tokyo, calling it a “provocative act”.
“Two Chinese bombers joined two Russian bombers in the Sea of Japan [known in South Korea as the East Sea] and make a joint flight to the East China Sea,” Nobuo Kishi, Japan’s defense minister, told reporters on Tuesday.
The defense ministry said the planes did not enter Japan’s territorial airspace.
Japan scrambled for jets after warplanes approached its airspace while Tokyo hosted the leaders of the Quad – the United States, India, Australia and Japan.
US President Joe Biden, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australia’s newly elected leader, Anthony Albanese, have gathered in the Japanese capital for the Quad summit – aimed at countering Chinese influence in Europe Asia Pacific.
A joint statement by the so-called Quad has warned against attempts to “change the status quo by force”, because of growing concern about whether China might invade self-ruled Taiwan.
However, the joint statement avoids mentioning Russia or China directly.
On Monday, Biden angered China by saying he would be willing to use force to defend Taiwan, but he said later on that US policy towards the self-governing democratic island had not changed. change. China considers Taiwan an inviolable part of its territory that should be reunified with the mainland.
South Korea’s military said it was also scrambling for fighter jets after at least four Chinese and four Russian warplanes entered the air defense identification zone (ADIZ). that the fighters did not enter the country’s airspace.
An ADIZ is usually an area where states can unilaterally require foreign aircraft to take special steps to identify themselves without any international law governing the ADIZ.
Exercise regularly every year
China’s Ministry of National Defense confirmed the joint air patrol over the Sea of Japan, East China Sea and Western Pacific, calling it part of annual military exercises.
“On May 24, the air forces of both countries organized and conducted a routine medium-range strategic patrol in the airspace above the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea and the West Thai Sea areas. Binh Duong”, a notice from the Ministry of National Defense said.
The joint patrol lasted 13 hours and involved Russian Tu-95 strategic bombers and Chinese Xian H-6 jets, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Japan’s defense minister said his country had “communicated through diplomatic channels about our grave concerns from the perspective of our country and the region’s security”.
“We believe the fact that this action was taken during the Quad summit makes it more provocative than it has been in the past,” he said, adding that it was the fourth incident since November.
“As the international community reacts to Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine, it is cause for concern that China’s actions in cooperation with Russia, the aggressor, are cause for concern. It cannot be ignored. ”
He said a Russian intelligence-gathering plane also flew from northern Hokkaido to the Noto peninsula in central Japan on Tuesday, calling the moves particularly “provocative” during the summit. peak in Tokyo.
Beijing and Moscow declared “Unlimited” Partnership just weeks before Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine, and China refused to condemn the move.
