Strategic nuclear bomber from China and Russia performed a joint patrol over the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, culminating in the first-ever landing of the aircraft on each other’s airfields as a sign of their expanding military ties.
Six Russian and two Chinese warplanes unexpectedly entered South Korea’s air defense zone, forcing the military to launch fighter fighters.
China’s Nuclear Bomber H-6K
After the Chinese and Russian planes passed over the Sea of Japan, Japan claimed to have likewise scrambled their jets. China’s H-6K bombers allegedly repeatedly entered and left the Korean Air Defence Identification Zone early on Wednesday near South Korea’s southern and northeastern shores.
After several hours, they made their way back from the East Sea to the area, bringing four TU-95 bombers and two Su-35 fighter fighters with them. Eventually, every warplane left the area, and Seoul claimed that none had breached South Korea’s airspace.
A country’s attempt to control airplanes in an area that is larger than its airspace is known as an air defense zone. Two Chinese H-6 bombers entered the Sea of Japan and then flew north, according to the Joint Staff of Japan, on Wednesday morning.
The aircraft operated entirely in compliance with international law, according to the Defence Ministry.
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Russia-China War Games Against West
In a scary message to the West, Russia and China previously held massive war games with 50,000 soldiers, 60 warships, and 140 aircraft.
The bomber patrol is the most recent instance of the two nations’ increased defense cooperation in recent years. It comes after several significant joint military exercises this year as the two nations deal with rising tensions with the United States over Russia’s conflict in Ukraine and China’s threats against Taiwan.
Before the combined China-Russia bomber patrol, a senior US defense official warned reporters that their coordinated military drills are frequently a means of signaling their closer alignment and conveying a message to the US and to other countries.
The Biden Administration unveiled a new defense strategy in October that places the US military on a par with China and Russia during the Cold War.
The strategy outlines a strategy to confront two nuclear peer adversaries for the first time in history with a multi-year buildup of modernized weapons, strengthened international alliances, and a $1.2 trillion overhaul of the American nuclear arsenal.
With its expanding power projection in the Pacific region, China is described as a long-term pacing challenge, whilst Russia is described as an urgent acute threat due to its ongoing conflict with Ukraine.
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