South Korea said it has scrambled fighter jets after detecting two Chinese and six Russian warplanes in its air defence zone.
The two Chinese H-6 bombers repeatedly entered and left the Korea Air Defence Identification Zone (KADIZ) off the southern and northeast coast at around 5:50am local time, the country’s military said.
They returned hours later from the Sea of Japan with the Russian warplanes – including TU-95 bombers and SU-35 fighter jets – and left after 18 minutes in the zone.
“Our military dispatched air force fighter jets ahead of the Chinese and Russian aircraft’s entry of the KADIZ to implement tactical measures in preparation for a potential contingency,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
The planes did not violate South Korea’s airspace, it added.
Japan also scrambled fighter jets after the Chinese bombers flew from the East China Sea into the Sea of Japan, where they were joined by two Russian drones, its defence ministry said later.
An air defence zone is an area in which countries demand that foreign aircraft take special steps to identify themselves.
Unlike a country’s airspace – the area above its territory and territorial waters – there are no international rules governing air defence zones.
Moscow does not recognise South Korea’s air defence zone. Beijing said the zone is not territorial airspace and all countries should enjoy freedom of movement there.
China and Russia have previously said their warplanes have been conducting regular joint exercises.
It is not the first time Russian warplanes have been spotted entering the KADIZ recently.
The JCS also reported detecting Russian aircraft entering the zone in August.
In 2019 South Korean warplanes fired hundreds of warning shots towards Russian military aircraft when they entered the KADIZ during a joint air patrol with China.