Chinese air force holds drills in Sea of Japan and around Taiwan

BEIJING • China's air force carried out another round of long-range drills, flying into the Sea of Japan, prompting South Korean jets to scramble, and around self-ruled Taiwan amid growing tension over China's assertiveness in the region.

Beijing has in recent months ramped up its long-range air force drills, particularly around Taiwan, claimed by China as its own.

The air force said in a statement yesterday that fighter and bomber aircraft flew through the Tsushima Strait that separates South Korea from Japan and into international waters in the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea. The Sea of Japan is not Japan's, and the drills were lawful and reasonable, air force spokesman Shen Jinke said in the statement, describing the exercises as routine and pre-planned.

The Japanese Defence Ministry said in a statement that the aircraft - two SU-30 fighters, two H-6 bombers and one TU-154 reconnaissance plane - had not violated Japan's airspace.

In Seoul, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said five Chinese military planes were spotted entering the Korean Air Defence Identification Zone, and fighter jets scrambled in response.

The Chinese aircraft also flew through Japan's air defence identification zone, it added. "Our fighter planes took normal tactical measures, identifying the models of the Chinese planes and flying aerial surveillance until they left."

Chinese air force spokesman Shen alluded to the scrambled aircraft, saying they "responded to interference from foreign military aircraft" but were able to achieve the aim of their drill.

Taiwan's military said China had staged a separate drill at the same time, flying through the Bashi Channel between Taiwan and the Philippines and then returning to base through the Strait of Miyako, to Taiwan's north. Taiwan monitored Japan sending F-15 fighters to intercept, Taiwan's Defence Ministry added in its statement.

The Chinese air force last week held "island encirclement patrols" near Taiwan, after a senior Chinese diplomat threatened that Beijing would invade the island if any US warships made port visits there.

China suspects Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen, who leads the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party, wants to declare the self-ruled island's formal independence. Ms Tsai says she wants to maintain peace with China but will defend Taiwan's security.

China's air force exercises also come amid regional tensions over North Korea's nuclear and missile programmes, with bellicose rhetoric from both North Korea and US President Donald Trump.

REUTERS

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 19, 2017, with the headline Chinese air force holds drills in Sea of Japan and around Taiwan. Subscribe