U.S. nuclear-capable strategic bombers flew over the Sea of Japan with Japanese fighter jets on Wednesday, Tokyo’s defense ministry announced Thursday.
Following Chinese and Russian military exercises near Japan, two B-52 bombers flew in formation with six Japanese jets in a bilateral exercise, the Japanese defense ministry said.
The nations “reaffirmed their strong resolve to prevent any unilateral attempt to change the status quo by force,” the ministry said in a Thursday press release.
Response To Regional Tensions
The drill came after a joint Chinese-Russian strategic bomber flight over the East China Sea and western Pacific on Tuesday.
Separate Chinese aircraft carrier operations prompted Japan to scramble jets, with Tokyo reporting that its aircraft were targeted by radar beams.
China’s state media later released an audio claiming that Japan’s Self-Defense Forces aircraft used radar against Chinese fighter jets.
Koizumi denied the claim, saying China had directed radar at Japanese F-15s twice during the Dec. 6 incident, while Japan was responding appropriately to an airspace violation.
South Korea’s military also scrambled fighters when Chinese and Russian aircraft entered its air defense zone on Tuesday.
Taiwan Dispute Heightens Concerns
Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi‘s remarks last month about a possible response to a Chinese attack on Taiwan drew Beijing’s ire.
China claims Taiwan, the democratically governed island, which lies nearly 110 kilometers from Japan’s Yonaguni.
Separately, China has also warned the United States against supporting Taiwan, calling it the ‘most important and sensitive issue‘ in bilateral relations.
Koizumi has also briefed NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte about the radar incident.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
