Representational Image. AFP
Washington: China allegedly sent a menacing radio warning to a U.S. Navy plane recently flying over the South China Sea before dispatching a jet to find the American plane.
Reportedly, a voice from a Chinese air force ground station warned a U.S. Navy P-8 flying outside Chinese airspace over the South China Sea, according to NBC News, “No approaching any more or you will bear full responsibility.”
Soon after, a Chinese fighter jet positioned itself 500 feet or so from the left wing of the American aircraft, which kept flying for more than an hour before disengaging.
As China tries to establish itself as the dominant power in the region and asserts control over many of the mostly uninhabited islands in the sea, U.S. military officials claim that encounters are occurring more frequently in the South China Sea.
“Normally, we don’t receive an answer, though occasionally we do. However, in general, we’re attempting to promote a professional and secure interaction while we’re both flying in international airspace “An NBC News reporter who was on the aircraft at the time was informed by Capt. Will Toraason, the commander of American Naval surveillance aircraft.
“I’ve been in the Navy for almost 18 and a half years now, and I can tell you that there has been a significant shift during that time, particularly in the South China Sea,” Cmdr. According to Marc Hines, this is partly becauseChina has been constructing artificial islets and runways in the South China Sea recently.
The interaction between the two military giants comes weeks after hostilities erupted over a Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down by the United States off the coast of South Carolina after flying over the country for several days.
About two weeks later, in a “confrontational” discussion, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi agreed that the balloon incident “must never happen again.”
China has publicly criticised the US over the incident, calling the response to the balloon “hysterical” and the choice to shoot it down a “absurd” violation of international law.
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