The Chinese planes came within 10 feet of the US military – US military aircraft

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A Chinese military aircraft came within 10 feet (3 metres) of a U.S. Air Force plane in the disputed South China Sea last week and forced it to perform evasive maneuvers to avoid collision in international airspace. The US military said on Thursday.

The close confrontation followed what the United States described as a recent trend of increasingly dangerous behavior by Chinese military aircraft.

The US military said in a statement that the incident, which involved a Chinese Navy J-11 fighter jet and a US Air Force RC-135, occurred on December 21.

“We expect all countries in the Indo-Pacific region to use international airspace safely and in accordance with international law,” the statement added.

A US military spokesperson said the Chinese plane came within 10 feet of the plane’s wing, but 20 feet of its nose, causing the US plane to make evasive maneuvers.

A separate US official said the US has raised the issue with the Chinese government.

The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In the past, China has said that the US sending its ships and planes into the South China Sea is not good for peace.

US military aircraft and ships routinely conduct surveillance and travel through the region.

China claims vast swaths of the South China Sea that overlap the exclusive economic zones of Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Trillions of dollars of trade flow each year through the waterway, which also contains rich fishing grounds and gas fields.

In a meeting with his Chinese counterpart in November, the US Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, raised the need to improve communications in a crisis, and also referred to what he called the dangerous behavior of Chinese military aircraft.

Despite tensions between the United States and China, American military officials have long sought to maintain open lines of communication with their Chinese counterparts to mitigate the risk of potential clashes or deal with any incidents.

The Australian Ministry of Defense said in June that a Chinese fighter jet seriously intercepted an Australian military reconnaissance aircraft in the South China Sea area in May.

Australia said the Chinese aircraft had circled close to the RAAF aircraft and released a “packet of chaff” containing small pieces of aluminum that were swallowed into the engine of the Australian aircraft.

In June, the Canadian military accused Chinese warplanes of harassing their patrol planes as they monitor operations to evade North Korean sanctions, sometimes forcing Canadian planes to stray from their flight paths.

Relations between China and the United States have been tense, with friction between the world’s two largest economies over everything from Taiwan and China’s human rights record to its military activity in the South China Sea.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in August angered China, which saw it as an attempt by the US to interfere in its internal affairs. China subsequently launched military exercises near the island.

The United States does not have formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan but is required by law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.

(Covering) Idriss Ali and Doina Chiacou Editing by Frances Kerry and Josie Kao

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