Russia, China conduct joint air patrol near Japan

Japan detected a new joint air operation by Russia and China near its borders. On Tuesday, December 9, the Japanese military scrambled fighter jets to monitor a group of Russian and Chinese aircraft that conducted extended patrols in the area of the Ryukyu archipelago and near key international air corridors.

Reuters reports this.

Russia and China deploy military aircraft to monitor Japan

According to Japan’s Ministry of Defense, two Russian Tu-95 strategic bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons took off from the Sea of Japan region and headed toward the East China Sea.

There, they met with Chinese H-6 bombers, after which both pairs of aircraft carried out a "long-distance joint flight" over the Pacific Ocean. The route passed through the airspace between Okinawa and Miyako Islands — an area classified as international waters and frequently used by foreign military aircraft.

In the subsequent phase of the operation, the group of bombers was accompanied by four Chinese J-16 fighter jets. They conducted a two-way flight through Miyako.

In parallel, the Japanese military detected additional Russian Air Force activity in the Sea of Japan — an A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft and two Su-30 fighters operating separately from the bomber group but during the same period.

Japan’s Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said on Wednesday on the social network X that such a coordinated air operation by Russia and China was "clearly intended as a show of force against our nation" and poses a serious challenge to national security. According to him, Japanese fighter jets carried out the full set of air-defense identification procedures in accordance with defense standards.

Meanwhile, Russian agencies, citing Russia’s Ministry of Defense, confirmed an eight-hour long joint flight near Japan, emphasizing that the operation was planned.

At the same time, South Korea reported that on Tuesday seven Russian and two Chinese aircraft entered its air defense identification zone, indicating broader regional activity by the two countries’ air forces.

In recent years, Russia and China have significantly expanded the scale of their military cooperation — from joint missile-defense exercises on Russian territory to naval drills with live-fire exercises in the South China Sea.

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