South Korea deploys jets as Chinese, Russian aircraft enter its defense zone
South Korea deploys jets as Chinese, Russian aircraft enter its defense zone (Getty Images)
South Korea's military has announced the deployment of fighter jets in response to the unannounced entry of Chinese and Russian military planes into its Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) over the Sea of Japan, according to Al Jazeera and Reuters.
According to a statement from South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), four Russian and two Chinese aircraft crossed into the KADIZ over the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, between 11:53 am (02:53 GMT) and 12:10 pm (03:10 GMT) on Thursday and subsequently departed.
They did not breach South Korea's territorial airspace, the military clarified.
The JCS detected the foreign aircraft before they entered the KADIZ and promptly scrambled its Air Force fighter jets to implement tactical measures. While South Korea lodged objections with China over the aircraft movement, it did not address the issue with Russia.
What is an Air Defense Identification Zone
The ADIZ is an area where nations can unilaterally require foreign aircraft to take specific identification steps, as per the International Civil Aviation Organization. This is distinct from a country's airspace, which typically extends 12 nautical miles from its coastline.
Unlike airspace, there are no international laws governing air defense zones.
Moscow does not recognize South Korea's air defense zone, and Beijing contends that the zone is not territorial airspace, stressing the principle of freedom of movement for all countries in that area.
China and Russia, as traditional allies of North Korea, have drawn attention to growing military ties between Pyongyang and Moscow, a concern raised by South Korea's ally Washington in the preceding month.
Recent similar incidents
On December 9, an unidentified aircraft was spotted in the skies over Germany, which did not communicate with controllers. German fighter jets were alerted.
On November 16, four NATO countries, along with Sweden, put their fighter jets on alert because a Russian aircraft IL-20 flying near the Alliance's airspace.
