South Korea’s military reported scrambling fighter jets on Friday in response to a group of Chinese and Russian military aircraft entering the Korea Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ), a strategically monitored area that extends beyond the nation’s airspace.
The incident occurred between 9:35 a.m. and 1:53 p.m. local time and involved five Chinese and six Russian planes flying in and out of the KADIZ over the East Sea and South Sea.
The KADIZ is an air defense buffer zone established to identify, monitor, and control aircraft entering the vicinity of a country’s airspace. Unlike national airspace, which is protected under international law, an ADIZ is not defined by global treaties and operates as a unilateral declaration.
Aircraft entering the zone are expected to notify the nation’s authorities beforehand, though compliance is not legally mandated.
While the foreign planes did not violate South Korea’s sovereign airspace, their entry into the KADIZ triggered a swift tactical response. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) confirmed that South Korean fighter jets had been deployed to monitor the situation and prepare for any contingencies.
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China’s defense ministry characterized the flights as part of a planned annual exercise, labeling them the “ninth joint strategic patrol” conducted by Chinese and Russian forces over the Sea of Japan, also known in South Korea as the East Sea. On social media, Beijing asserted that the patrols adhered to a mutual cooperation agreement between the two nations’ militaries.
During the flights, Chinese aircraft reportedly approached the disputed Dokdo islets, known as Takeshima in Japan, while passing through the channel between the Korean Peninsula and Japan near the submerged Ieodo rock. Russian aircraft followed a similar trajectory, later joining Chinese planes to patrol over the sea south of Dokdo before exiting the zone.
This is not the first time Chinese and Russian military planes have entered the KADIZ. Similar joint patrols occurred in May and November of 2022, as well as in June and December of 2023. Such incidents are typically described by Beijing and Moscow as strategic exercises aimed at bolstering regional military cooperation.
Since 2019, these incursions have become routine, prompting repeated diplomatic protests from Seoul. The South Korean defense ministry expressed “regret” over the latest incident and requested both China and Russia to implement measures to prevent future occurrences. “Such actions unnecessarily heighten tensions in the region,” the ministry stated.
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China and Russia’s expanded military collaboration reflects a broader alignment in their strategic goals, especially in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago. Both nations are also key allies of North Korea, a country with which they share historical and military ties.
This relationship has raised further concerns in South Korea, especially as Pyongyang recently ratified a significant defense pact with Moscow.
South Korea and its allies, including the United States, have accused North Korea of covertly supplying soldiers and weapons to assist Russia in its ongoing conflict with Ukraine. These developments add a layer of complexity to an already volatile region, where military maneuvers risk escalating tensions between major global powers.
The repeated military incursions into the KADIZ highlight the ongoing contest for dominance in East Asia. As South Korea continues to navigate a challenging geopolitical landscape, the presence of foreign military aircraft in its defense zone underscores the need for vigilance and robust diplomatic engagement to mitigate potential conflicts.
With China and Russia solidifying their partnership and the broader security dynamics in flux, South Korea faces increasing pressure to maintain a delicate balance between asserting its sovereignty and avoiding provocation in an already tense region.