BEIJING — Two Chinese fighter jets have buzzed a U.S. spy plane that sniffs out nuclear radiation while flying over the East China Sea, underlining Beijing’s discomfort with American surveillance in its neighborhood.
The incident, reported Friday, also comes amid disagreement between the two countries on how to confront the nuclear and missile programs of North Korea, which depends on China as its main economic lifeline.
The American plane, a WC-135 Constant Phoenix, collects samples from the air to detect nucle0ar explosions. The U.S. Air Force said it was on a routine mission in international airspace. An American official told CNN, however, that the plane has been regularly deployed in Northeast Asia to gather evidence of possible further nuclear tests by North Korea.
The Chinese military has become increasingly unhappy with American surveillance in the East China Sea and in Southeast Asia in the South China Sea, where Beijing claims full sovereignty in an ongoing dispute with U.S. allies in the region such as the Philippines.
Intercepts are not uncommon in both areas. But the latest incident appeared an unusually tight encounter.
Two Chinese SU-30 fighters flew up close to an American WC-135 on Wednesday, the U.S. Air Force said in a statement, saying the American aircrew had described the intercept as “unprofessional,” based on the Chinese pilot’s maneuvers and the speeds and proximity involved.
“The issue is being addressed with China through appropriate diplomatic and military channels,” said Air Force spokeswoman Lt. Col. Lori Hodge, adding the U.S. military is investigating the intercept.
Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying declined to comment, referring questions to the defense ministry which has not yet commented.
“But as we said before, for a long time, the surveillance activities of U.S. military planes and ships near China’s territory are very likely to lead to misunderstanding, miscalculation, and accidents on the sea or in the air,” she told a regular news conference.
“So we hope the U.S. side can respect China’s reasonable national security concerns.”
Whether the close encounter was meant to send a signal to the Americans or was merely the action of an over exuberant pilot is not clear, experts said.
The U.S. official told CNN the Chinese jets came within 150 feet of the U.S. plane, with one of the Su-30s flying inverted, or upside down, directly above the American plane.
“U.S. military aircraft routinely transit international airspace throughout the Pacific, including the East China Sea,” Hodge said. “This flight was no exception.”
China is also unhappy about the deployment of a U.S. missile defense system in South Korea, which is meant to protect the country against attack from the North but which Beijing fears will also be used to spy on its territory.
