Japan and South Korea have lambasted air patrols in the Asia-Pacific area.
Russia and China conducted joint air patrols in the Asia-Pacific region on Tuesday, the Russian Defense MinistryDefense Ministry said, as Japan and South Korea expressed concerns about the flights.
The Russian ministry said in a statement that its Tu 95 strategic missile carriers and Chinese Xian H-6 strategic bombers participated in exercises held over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea. The bombers were escorted by Su 30 SM fighter jets.
The duration of the flight of Russian strategic missile carriers was about 13 hours, the ministry said.
It also confirmed that strategic missile carriers were escorted by F-2 aircraft of the South Korean Air Force and F-15 of the Japanese Air Force at certain stages of the route. The ministry emphasized that both Chinese and Russian aircraft acted strictly in accordance with the provisions of international law and did not violate the airspace of other countries.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that the event was part of the implementation of the military cooperation plan for 2022 provisions, and is not directed against third countries.
Air patrols coincided with a meeting between the leaders of the US, India, Australia and Japan at the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue Quad summit in Tokyo.
The Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi told reporters that his government had communicated to Russia and China its concerns over the provocative flyovers, noting that these concerns are related to both Japan s security and regional security in general. He stated that there was no violation of Japanese territorial airspace, but he emphasized that collaboration between China and Russia was concerning.
As the international community responds to Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the fact that China took such action in collaboration with Russia is cause for concern. Kishi said it can't be overlooked.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff JCS said Russian and Chinese planes entered and left the Korea Air Defense Identification ZoneDefense Identification Zone ADIZ in the Sea of Japan several times on Tuesday but never violated South Korea's airspace.
As JCS clarified, Seoul s air force fighters had to implement tactical measures in order to prepare for a potential contingency.