Chinese military plane enters S. Korea's air defense zone in East Sea
By Park Ji-won
South Korea's foreign and defense ministries expressed regret over a Chinese military plane's unauthorized flight into the South's air defense zone on Saturday, urging Beijing to stop it happening again.
Lee Won-ik, director general of international policy at the Ministry of National Defense, summoned his Chinese counterpart Saturday, saying a Chinese military jet had again entered the Korean Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) without notification. "The South Korean government and its people consider it a serious problem entering into our territory and flying over conflict areas for long hours."
The ministry said Lee delivered a message to the attache, asking China to take measures to prevent a recurrence and to hold a meeting to set up additional inter-country military hotlines to prevent accidental clashes between the two countries.
Seoul's foreign ministry also said it summoned a Chinese official to express its regrets while urging Beijing to take measures to prevent a recurrence.
The moves came after the Chinese military jet entered South Korea's air defense zone three times without notice on Saturday. The aircraft entered the zone about 8:03 a.m. near Ieodo and left at 8:27 a.m., according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Saturday, government officials said.
It entered the zone again at 9:34 a.m. near Pohang and flew between Ulleung and the easternmost islets of Dokdo, leaving the zone at 12:51 p.m. The JCS said it was the first time a Chinese military plane had flown over the East Sea this year.
Experts say China's move is aimed at expanding into the area by normalizing the flights.
Chinese jets entered the zone without notice eight times last year.
A JCS official said the aircraft involved in Saturday's incident was believed to be a Y-9 reconnaissance plane.
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2019/02/205_264309.html
China regularly sends military aircraft into Korean and Japanese air defense zones, and this would be the first this year. What's left out of English articles is significantly more concerning however, which is that China also sent three warships through the Korea Strait and into the East Sea(Sea of Japan).
Chinese military aircraft's flight path is in red.
