Friday, December 6, 2024

US Military Complains of Unsafe, Aggressive Move by Chinese Fighter Jet

Published:

— The U.S. said Tuesday that a Chinese fighter jet flew aggressively close to a U.S. reconnaissance aircraft over the South China Sea, forcing the American pilot to fly through the turbulent wake.

The Chinese J-16 fighter pilot “flew directly in front of the nose of the RC-135,” which was conducting routine operations in international airspace last Friday, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement. It called the Chinese move an “ unnecessarily aggressive maneuver.”

U.S. defense leaders have complained that China’s military has become significantly more aggressive over the past five years, intercepting U.S. aircraft and ships in the region. And tensions with China have only grown in recent months over Washington’s military support and sales of defensive weapons to self-governing , China’s assertions of sovereignty to the contested South China Sea and its flying of a suspected spy balloon over the U.S.

In a further sign of the tensions, China said its defense chief will not meet with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin when the two men attend a security conference in this coming weekend. Austin is scheduled to address the Shangri-La Dialogue on Saturday, while Chinese Defense Minister Gen. Li Shangfu will speak at the gathering on Sunday.

Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, said China informed the U.S. that it was declining Austin’s invitation to…

Continue Reading This Article At Military.com

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