China alleges Australian plane entered Parcel Islands airspace; Australia protests after PLA fighter flares near surveillance aircraft. Photo: X.
China’s military alleged on Monday that an Australian military aircraft had entered Chinese airspace near the Parcel Islands without authorization, urging Australia to “immediately cease infringement provocation.”
The accusation comes amid rising tensions in the South China Sea, following a separate incident earlier on Monday when Australia lodged a diplomatic protest with Beijing. The protest was over a Chinese jet fighter releasing flares near an Australian surveillance plane, part of a continuing series of encounters between the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and the Chinese military.
Defence Minister Richard Marles confirmed that no personnel were harmed in the flare incident but described China’s actions as “unsafe and unprofessional.”
Speaking to ABC News, Marles explained that an Australian P-8 surveillance aircraft was conducting a routine patrol over the South China Sea when it was approached by a fighter jet from China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Marles added that Australia was deliberately publicising the encounter as part of the government’s broader strategy to respond to dangerous behaviour by China’s military.
This incident follows heightened regional tensions last month when a Canadian frigate and an Australian destroyer transited the Taiwan Strait, prompting protests from Beijing, according to China’s state-run media.
Chinese forces reportedly monitored the passage. Citing the PLA’s Eastern Theater Command, state-run Global Times reported that the transit “sent wrong signals and heightened security risks.” Senior Col. Shi Yi, spokesperson for the command, emphasized that Chinese forces “remain on high alert at all times and will resolutely safeguard China’s national sovereignty, security, and regional peace and stability.”
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Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
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