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U.S. Flies B-52s Into China’s Expanded Air Defense Zone U.S. Flies B-52s Into China’s Expanded Air Defense Zone
(about 2 hours later)
WASHINGTON — Two long-range American bombers have conducted what Pentagon officials described Tuesday as a routine training mission through airspace recently claimed by China as its “air defense identification zone.” WASHINGTON — Two long-range American bombers flew through airspace that China recently declared it has the right to police in what Pentagon officials described as a routine flight but which sent a clear message that the United States rejects the Chinese claims.
The Chinese government said Saturday that it had the right to identify, monitor and possibly take military action against aircraft that enter the area, which includes sea and islands also claimed by Japan. The claim threatens to escalate an already tense dispute over some of the maritime territory. B-52 bombers passed through what is likely to become the most contested area of China’s new “air defense identification zone”: the airspace above islands that are the subject of a tense sovereignty dispute between Japan and China.
American officials said the pair of B-52s carried out a mission that had been planned long in advance of the Chinese announcement last weekend, and that the United States military would continue to assert its right to fly through what it regards as international airspace. The flights over the East China Sea came a week before Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. is scheduled to visit Beijing as part of a weeklong trip that will include stops in Japan and South Korea amid American attempts to revive its “pivot” to Asia. Administration officials said Mr. Biden would raise American concerns about China’s territorial claims with the leadership in Beijing.
Pentagon officials said the two bombers made a round-trip flight from Guam, passing through a zone that covers sea and islands that are the subject of a sovereignty dispute between Japan and China. The American officials said the United States military would continue to assert its right to fly through what it regards as international airspace by continuing a standard cycle of training flights in the area. United States officials said there had been no Chinese response to Tuesday’s bomber run, which was a roundtrip from Guam.
Officials said there had been no Chinese response to the bomber run. On Saturday, the Chinese government announced, without consultations, that it had the right to identify, monitor and possibly take military action against aircraft that enter the newly designated air defense zone — a move that threatened to create new friction with Japan.
The Obama administration has become increasingly worried by the tense standoff over the islands, which could drag the United States into a conflict. By treaty, the United States is obligated to defend Japan if it is attacked. The Obama administration has become increasingly worried by the standoff over the islands, which could drag the United States into a conflict. By treaty, the United States is obligated to defend Japan if it is attacked.
The islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China, are currently administered by the Japanese, who consider the airspace above the islands to be theirs as well. The islands, called the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China, are currently administered by the Japanese, who consider the airspace above that area to be theirs.
On Tuesday, Josh Earnest, a deputy White House spokesman, reiterated the administration’s view that the Chinese announcement was “unnecessarily inflammatory” and had a “destabilizing impact on the region.” On Tuesday, Josh Earnest, a deputy White House spokesman, reiterated the administration’s view that the Chinese announcement was “unnecessarily inflammatory” and had a “destabilizing impact on the region.” Officials and analysts have been especially worried that the more planes and boats in the contested area around the islands, the greater the risk of a mistake that spirals out of control.
Within hours of the Chinese announcement that it had declared what Beijing termed an “East China Sea air defense identification zone,” Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel issued a statement expressing deep concern over the action. Within hours of the Chinese announcement, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel issued a statement expressing deep concern.
“We view this development as a destabilizing attempt to alter the status quo in the region,” Mr. Hagel said. “This unilateral action increases the risk of misunderstanding and miscalculations.”“We view this development as a destabilizing attempt to alter the status quo in the region,” Mr. Hagel said. “This unilateral action increases the risk of misunderstanding and miscalculations.”
Mr. Hagel noted, “This announcement by the People’s Republic of China will not in any way change how the United States conducts military operations in the region.”Mr. Hagel noted, “This announcement by the People’s Republic of China will not in any way change how the United States conducts military operations in the region.”
Pentagon officials said the training sortie by the two B-52s could be seen as underscoring that commitment to preserving traditional rules of international airspace.
Mr. Hagel’s statement said the United States had conveyed “concerns to China through diplomatic and military channels, and we are in close consultation with our allies and partners in the region, including Japan.”
His statement concluded by noting that the United States is “steadfast in our commitments to our allies and partners. The United States reaffirms its longstanding policy that Article V of the U.S.-Japan Mutual Defense Treaty applies to the Senkaku Islands.”His statement concluded by noting that the United States is “steadfast in our commitments to our allies and partners. The United States reaffirms its longstanding policy that Article V of the U.S.-Japan Mutual Defense Treaty applies to the Senkaku Islands.”
The move by China appeared to be another step in its efforts to intensify pressure on Japan over the Japanese-controlled islands in the East China Sea that are at the heart of the dispute. The Defense Department routinely uses transit of combat aircraft and warships to assert the right of free passage in international airspace and international waters — and to demonstrate a willingness to defend American and allied interests against possible aggressors.
The declaration, from a Ministry of National Defense spokesman, Col. Yang Yujun, accompanied the ministry’s release of a map, geographic coordinates and rules in Chinese and English that said, “China’s armed forces will take defensive emergency measures to respond to aircraft that do not cooperate in identification or refuse to follow orders.” The move by China appeared to be another step in its efforts to intensify pressure on Japan over the contested islands. It began with nearly daily entry into or near Japanese-claimed waters by Chinese coast guard and other paramilitary ships. The incursions led to a constant game of cat-and-mouse on the high seas in which Japanese coast guard ships pursue the Chinese ships, with both sides using bull horns and electric sign boards to tell the other to stay out of its territorial waters.
“The objective is to defend national sovereignty and territorial and air security, as well as to maintain orderly aviation,” Colonel Yang said in comments issued on the ministry’s website. One of the rules requires all aircraft flying in the zone to file flight plans with Chinese authorities. Though military forces are never far, they have tended to have stay in the background, apparently with an eye on preventing a dangerous escalation. The Chinese began to make stronger claims after Japan purchased some of the islands from a Japanese citizen last year. Japan’s leaders said they did so to keep the islands away from a Japanese ultranationalist, but China saw the purchase as a way for Japan to strengthen its control.
After the announcement Saturday, several Japanese commercial airlines began filing flight plans with China, according to the Japanese government. On Tuesday, Japan’s Transportation Ministry asked them to stop, and a group representing the two largest Japanese airlines, Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airlines, issued a statement later Tuesday saying that it would heed the request. In its announcement of the new air defense zone, the Chinese defense ministry said the country would require flight plans, as well as radio and logo identification of all aircraft operating in the zone. The state-run news agency, Xinhua, said that if an aircraft did not supply its flight plan, “China’s armed forces will adopt emergency defensive measures in response.”
At the Foreign Ministry on Tuesday, the spokesman, Qin Gang, said that all foreign aircraft — including those from the United States — would be subject to the new rules without exceptions.
After the announcement Saturday, several Japanese commercial airlines began filing flight plans with China, according to the Japanese government. On Tuesday, Japan’s Transportation Ministry asked them to stop, and a group representing the two largest Japanese airlines — Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airlines — issued a statement later in the day saying that it would heed the request.
The group, the Scheduled Airlines Association of Japan, said it had “determined that there was no concern about the safety of flights even if flight plans were not submitted to China.”The group, the Scheduled Airlines Association of Japan, said it had “determined that there was no concern about the safety of flights even if flight plans were not submitted to China.”
Japan’s foreign minister, Fumio Kishida, said the government was in close communication with the airlines.Japan’s foreign minister, Fumio Kishida, said the government was in close communication with the airlines.
“I believe it is important for the public and private sectors to cooperate in showing our firm resolve to China,” Mr. Kishida said.“I believe it is important for the public and private sectors to cooperate in showing our firm resolve to China,” Mr. Kishida said.

Martin Fackler contributed reporting from Tokyo.

Jane Perlez contributed reporting from Beijing, and Martin Fackler from Tokyo.