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China scrambles jets in air zone to monitor US and Japanese planes China scrambles jets in air zone to monitor US and Japanese planes
(about 1 hour later)
China says it scrambled fighter jets to monitor US and Japanese planes as they flew in its newly declared air defence zone in the East China Sea on Friday.China says it scrambled fighter jets to monitor US and Japanese planes as they flew in its newly declared air defence zone in the East China Sea on Friday.
The zone covers territory claimed by China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea.The zone covers territory claimed by China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea.
China said last week that all aircraft crossing through the zone must file flight plans and identify themselves or face "defensive emergency measures".China said last week that all aircraft crossing through the zone must file flight plans and identify themselves or face "defensive emergency measures".
The US, Japan and South Korea say they have since defied the ruling and flown military aircraft in the area.The US, Japan and South Korea say they have since defied the ruling and flown military aircraft in the area.
The air defence identification zone (ADIZ) covers a vast area of the East China Sea and includes a group of islands which are claimed by Japan, China and Taiwan. The air defence identification zone (ADIZ) covers a vast area of the East China Sea, including a group of islands claimed by Japan, China and Taiwan.
South Korea claims ownership of a submerged rock, known as Ieodo, within the zone. South Korea claims a submerged rock, known as Ieodo, also within the zone.
The establishment of the ADIZ has caused widespread anger, with the US calling it a "destabilising attempt to alter the status quo in the region". The establishment of the ADIZ has caused widespread anger, with the US state department calling it "an attempt to unilaterally change the status quo in the East China Sea" which will "raise regional tensions and increase the risk of miscalculation, confrontation and accidents".
There are fears that the increasing tension and militarisation of the region could escalate into an unplanned military incident.
'Firm but calm''Firm but calm'
On Thursday, China had announced it was deploying warplanes in the area as a "defensive measure" and to carry out routine surveillance. On Thursday, China had announced it was deploying warplanes in the area for surveillance and defence.
Then on Friday, Air Force spokesman Col Shen Jinke said Chinese warplanes had been scrambled that morning to identify two US surveillance aircraft and 10 Japanese planes - including early warning aircraft, surveillance aircraft and fighter jets - crossing through the ADIZ, state media reports. Then on Friday, Air Force spokesman Col Shen Jinke said warplanes had been scrambled that morning to monitor two US surveillance aircraft and 10 Japanese planes - including early warning aircraft, surveillance aircraft and fighter jets - crossing through the ADIZ.
Col Jinke made no reference to whether any further action was taken by any of the aircraft. Col Shen said the jets had tracked the flights and identified the planes, state media reports.
Earlier, Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said China had a right to patrol the region and that it the ADIZ was not aimed at any specific country. Japanese officials gave no details of the flights, but said they were continuing to conduct routine operations in the region and had encountered no "abnormal instances so far".
"It's absolutely a measure designated to exercise the right of defence effectively," he told a regular briefing. Earlier, China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said China had a right to patrol the region and that the ADIZ was not aimed at any specific country.
"If some worry has emerged about the situation, it's agitated by some individual countries." "If some worry has emerged about the situation, it's agitated by some individual countries," he told a regular briefing.
If maritime disputes existed, China wanted to solve them through "peaceful means via friendly negotiation," state news agency Xinhua quoted him as saying. If disputes existed, China wanted to solve them through "peaceful means via friendly negotiation," he said.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Friday that Japan would respond "firmly but in a calm manner" to China's move, the Kyodo news agency reports.Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Friday that Japan would respond "firmly but in a calm manner" to China's move, the Kyodo news agency reports.
Foreign Minister Fumio Kushida said the issue would be discussed with US Vice-President Joe Biden, who is due to begin a three-day visit to Japan on Monday.Foreign Minister Fumio Kushida said the issue would be discussed with US Vice-President Joe Biden, who is due to begin a three-day visit to Japan on Monday.
The disputed group islands in the zone - known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in Chinese - are uninhabited, but have been the subject of rising tensions in recent years. The disputed group of uninhabited islands in the zone are known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in Chinese.
They are controlled by Japan, and were under private ownership until the Japanese state bought them in 2012, angering China. They are controlled by Japan, but have been the subject of rising tensions in recent years because of their proximity to important shipping lanes, fishing grounds and potential fossil fuel reserves.
South Korea has also complained to China that the ADIZ overlaps its own similar defence zone, and encompasses the Ieodo rock, but Beijing has said it will not redraw the lines. South Korea has complained to China that the ADIZ also overlaps its own similar defence zone, and encompasses the Ieodo rock.
A number of regional commercial airlines - including Singapore Airlines, Qantas and Korean Air - have said they will comply with China's requirements to file a flight plan, identify themselves and maintain radio contact while crossing the ADIZ. A number of regional commercial airlines - including Singapore Airlines, Qantas and Korean Air - have said they will comply with China's new requirements.