China-Russia Bombers: Japan & Korea Scramble Jets

Japan and South Korea scrambled jets Tuesday in response to a joint Chinese-Russian bomber patrol conducted over international waters near both nations. The flights, part of an annual bilateral exercise, come amid heightened tensions between China and Japan over increasing signals of support from Tokyo for Taiwan.

Joint Military Exercise Triggers Regional Response

Two Russian Tu-95 Bear turboprop bombers flew south from the Sea of Japan into the East China Sea, according to the Japanese Defense Ministry. After flying between west of Japan and southeast of South Korea, they joined two Chinese H-6 series bombers near Okinawa, Japan.

The aircraft then conducted a long-distance joint flight from the East China Sea to the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Shikoku, the Japanese Defense Ministry stated. The bombers were accompanied by four Chinese J-16 Flanker multirole fighter derivatives while flying between Okinawa Island and Miyako Island.

The Bear bombers later returned north into the Sea of Japan while the Chinese jets flew back toward China. Additionally, one Russian A-50 Mainstay early warning and control aircraft and two Russian Su-30 Flanker fighters were spotted north of Japan in the Sea of Japan, according to the Japanese Defense Ministry. In response, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force scrambled fighter jets.

South Korea also dispatched fighters after the joint flight briefly entered its Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ), according to the Yonhap News Agency. “Two Chinese military planes and seven Russian aircraft successively entered the KADIZ at around 10 a.m. prompting the military to dispatch Air Force fighter jets in preparation for a possible accidental situation,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

Joint Chinese-Russian flights in this area are not new. Since 2019, the two countries have sent military planes into the KADIZ once or twice a year during joint exercises without prior notice, Yonhap explained. The last such flight took place in November 2024, involving 11 military planes from both countries.

These flights occur as China and Japan are locked in an intensifying dispute over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s comments that any Chinese attack on Taiwan would be considered an existential threat to Tokyo. Beijing views Taiwan as a breakaway province and has stated its intention to reunify it, peacefully if possible, but by military means if necessary. China also perceives growing militancy from Japan as a threat.

The tensions manifested Saturday when Chinese J-15 fighters launched from the aircraft carrier Liaoning near Okinawa and locked radar on two Japanese F-15 Eagle fighters. Both sides acknowledge the incident, but dispute its cause and handling. China claims the Japanese fighters were interfering with training exercises.

While the joint Chinese-Russian bomber patrol has become routine, the growing tensions between Beijing and Tokyo show no signs of abating.