Chinese military planes locked radars on Japanese fighter jets near the southern Japanese island of Okinawa, Japan’s Defense Ministry said Sunday, calling the act “dangerous.”
Tokyo lodged a “strong protest” with Beijing following this incident, which caused no injuries or damage, Japanese Defense Minister Shinkiro Koizumi said at a press conference.
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Relations between the two countries have been strained since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested in November that his country could intervene militarily in the event of an attack on Taiwan.
Koizumi called China’s action “dangerous and extremely regrettable” and warned Beijing to avoid a repeat.
The minister explained that “a J-15 fighter jet, launched from the Chinese navy aircraft carrier Liaoning, intermittently locked on” to an F-15 fighter jet of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, which had been deployed due to the Chinese plane’s intrusion into Japanese airspace.
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About two hours later, another Chinese J-15 intermittently locked on another Japanese fighter, he added.
— Locking the radar during these incidents is a dangerous act that goes beyond what is necessary for the safe flight of the aircraft, he said.
Warfighters use radar to identify attack targets as well as for search and rescue operations.