US Reconnaissance Aircraft Flies from Okinawa to the West Sea, Conducting Reconnaissance over Shandong and Jiangsu Provinces in China

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[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] A U.S. military reconnaissance aircraft is reported to have entered the West Sea and conducted close reconnaissance of regions including Shandong and Jiangsu provinces in China.

According to the Weibo account of the Chinese think tank South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI) on the 20th, a U.S. military RC-135W (Rivet Joint) took off from Okinawa, Japan, and conducted reconnaissance over the eastern coast of China from 9:50 a.m. to 11:20 a.m. local time.

The RC-135W reportedly flew at an average distance of about 74 km outside China's territorial baseline that day, and approached as close as approximately 50 km outside the territorial baseline near Shandong Province.

Amid rising military tensions between the U.S. and China, the U.S. military continues to send reconnaissance aircraft near the Chinese coast. According to SCSPI, the RC-135W conducted close reconnaissance over the South China Sea and southern coast of China for 11 hours and 20 minutes on the 16th. Additionally, a U.S. anti-submarine patrol aircraft P-8A (Poseidon) reportedly flew over the southern Taiwan Strait twice?once between the night of the 16th and 2 a.m. on the 17th, and again around 9 a.m. on the 17th?receiving aerial refueling during these flights.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.