Particle.news
Download on the App Store
8 ARTICLES
·
5d ago

Japan Protests Two Close Chinese Jet Intercepts Over East China Sea

Tokyo lodged a diplomatic protest after two JH-7 fighters closed to within 196 feet of its surveillance aircraft

Image
China intercepts Japanese spy aircraft over East China sea: Report
A J-15 fighter jet from the Chinese aircraft carrier Shandong making an unusual approach to a Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force P-3C patrol aircraft that was conducting surveillance above the Pacific Ocean on June 8. Photo: Japan’s Ministry of Defence / AFP

Overview

  • On July 9 and 10, Chinese JH-7 fighter-bombers intercepted Japanese YS-11EB surveillance aircraft over international waters in the East China Sea near the Senkaku Islands.
  • In the latest encounter, a JH-7 flew to within 196 feet horizontally and 98 feet vertically of a YS-11EB, a maneuver Japan described as “unusual” and warned could have led to a collision.
  • Both interceptions lasted around 10 to 15 minutes and resulted in no damage or injuries to the Japanese planes or their crews, according to the Defense Ministry.
  • Japan’s vice foreign minister Takehiro Funakoshi summoned Ambassador Wu Jianghao to lodge a formal protest and urged China to stop operations that could provoke accidental collisions.
  • China’s Defense Ministry defends the actions as protecting its sovereignty over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, accusing Japan of dangerous provocations near its assets.