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Australia accuses China fighter jet of 'unsafe' conduct above South China Sea
Beijing swiftly hit back, accusing the Australian plane of "violating Chinese sovereignty and endangering Chinese national security".
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This photo taken on August 22, 2023 shows a US Navy's P-8 Poseidon patrol and reconnaissance plane circling past a Chinese coast guard ship during the re-supply mission by a civilian boat chartered by the Philippine navy to deliver supplies to Philippine navy ship BRP Sierra Madre in the disputed South China Sea. (AFP/Ted Aljibe)
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ustralia said Thursday that a Chinese fighter jet dropped flares near an Australian air force plane patrolling the South China Sea, accusing Beijing of "unsafe" military conduct.
Beijing swiftly hit back, accusing the Australian plane of "violating Chinese sovereignty and endangering Chinese national security".
China claims almost all of the South China Sea, despite an international ruling in 2016 concluding this has no legal basis.
The Australian plane was flying a "routine" surveillance patrol over the contested waters on February 11 when the Chinese aircraft approached, Canberra's defence department said Thursday.
The Shenyang J-16 strike jet "released flares in close proximity" to the Australian Poseidon surveillance plane, it added, calling the incident "an unsafe and unprofessional manoeuvre that posed a risk to the aircraft and personnel".
The department said the Australian government had "expressed its concerns" to China over the incident.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said that "without Chinese permission, the Australian military aircraft deliberately intruded into the airspace around China's Xisha Islands", Beijing's name for the Paracel Islands.
"China's measures to expel the aircraft were legitimate, legal, professional and restrained," Guo said.
He added that Beijing had "lodged solemn representations" with Canberra to demand an end to "infringements and provocations".
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles said the flares passed within 30 metres (100 feet) of the aircraft, which typically carried around nine people.
No one was injured but Marles said the move posed the "potential for significant damage".
He told Sky News that officials had voiced their displeasure with their Chinese counterparts in Canberra and Beijing.
The rebuke coincided with the arrival of three Chinese navy vessels in waters northeast of Australia's mainland.
Defence department officials said a Chinese frigate and a cruiser had been spotted near Australia's "maritime approaches" with a supply tanker in tow.
Marles said it appeared to be unrelated to the aircraft incident but the Australian navy had sent its own frigate to shadow their voyage.
"Australia respects the rights of all states to exercise freedom of navigation and overflight in accordance with international law, just as we expect others to respect Australia's right to do the same," the defence department said.
"Defence will continue to monitor the activities of the task group in Australia's maritime approaches with a combination of capabilities, including air and maritime assets."
