China completed the second phase of joint air patrols with Russia over the western Pacific today, Wednesday, following patrols on Tuesday over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea, raising national security concerns in Japan. South Korea and Japan deployed fighter jets on Tuesday when the Chinese-Russian joint patrols began as part of the annual cooperation plan between the two countries' militaries.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno stated at a press conference in Tokyo today that the air patrols pose a "serious concern" for Japan's national security, and these worries have been communicated to China and Russia through diplomatic channels. Matsuno, the government's chief spokesperson, added that "such repeated joint air patrols using strategic bombers from both countries in our vicinity indicate an expansion of activities next to us, clearly aimed at behaving provocatively in our country."
South Korea dispatched fighter jets promptly after four Russian military aircraft and four Chinese military aircraft entered its air defense zone in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and to the east. The Japanese military confirmed it quickly deployed fighter jets after verifying that two Russian bombers joined two Chinese bombers over the Sea of Japan and flew together for a considerable distance toward the East China Sea.
The latest round of joint air patrols, the sixth for Russia and China since 2019, comes amid rising tensions in the Asia-Pacific region, where both China and the United States have been intensifying military activity.
