China-Russia Defense Ministries Say Entry into Dokdo ADIZ Part of Planned Joint Patrol Flight

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Yuri] Regarding the incident on the 19th when Russian and Chinese military aircraft entered and then withdrew from the Korean Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) near Dokdo, the defense ministries of both countries stated that it was part of a planned joint patrol flight.

The defense ministries of both countries announced through the media and their websites that on this day, the Russian Aerospace Forces and the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force conducted the third joint air patrol activity in the Asia-Pacific region. They confirmed, "Two Tupolev (Tu)-95MS strategic bombers belonging to the Russian Aerospace Forces and two Hong-6K strategic bombers of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force conducted patrol flights over the Sea of Japan (East Sea) and the East China Sea." The joint patrol flight aims to develop Russia-China relations and comprehensive partnership, further enhance the level of cooperation between the two militaries, improve military coordination, and strengthen global strategic stability.

They added, "This flight was conducted as part of the implementation of the 2021 military cooperation plan between Russia and China and was not aimed at any third country." The Chinese Ministry of National Defense claimed, "We strictly complied with international law regulations and did not enter the airspace of any other country."

According to our military authorities, at around 10:50 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. on the same day, two Chinese military aircraft and seven Russian military aircraft entered and then exited the KADIZ northeast of Dokdo in the East Sea. The Chinese and Russian military aircraft that entered the KADIZ hovered in the zone for about 10 minutes each. There was no airspace violation. Our military authorities stated that they are evaluating this situation as a routine joint exercise between China and Russia.

Previously, on December 22 of last year, four Chinese military aircraft and fifteen Russian military aircraft entered and exited the KADIZ. In October 2019, six Russian military aircraft conducted training flights over the East Sea, West Sea, and East China Sea. At that time, they entered the KADIZ for about three hours, and around ten of our Air Force fighter jets scrambled in response. In July of the same year, Russian military aircraft reportedly violated Korean airspace near Dokdo twice for about seven minutes, causing controversy. However, Russia did not acknowledge the airspace violation at that time.

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