US Accuses PRC Airforce of 'Risky Behavior' in Pacific

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Facts

  • The US military on Tuesday accused the Chinese air force of orchestrating a 'concerted' campaign of dangerous and provocative maneuvers against American military planes in international airspace. US Assistant Sec. of Defense for Indo-Pacific Affairs, Ely Ratner, warned, 'This type of operational behavior can cause accidents, and dangerous accidents can lead to inadvertent conflict.'1
  • Ratner also alleged a 'sharp increase in coercive and risky operational behavior in the East and South China seas,' noting an incident in January where a PRC jet flew 'hundreds of miles per hour' towards a US aircraft flying in international airspace. The Pentagon, which is set to issue its annual China Military Power Report, has already released footage of 180 encounters with Chinese aircraft over the last two years.2
  • According to Ratner, one incident, during which a 'clearly armed' Chinese jet came within '30 feet' of the US asset, is part more systemic issue — adding that China is also engaging in such provocations 'on land against our Indian partners.' China and India share a long border that has included skirmishes and military casualties on both sides.3
  • The growing tensions between Washington and Beijing come as the US has played a role in the Ukraine war and is now sending carrier strike groups and amphibious ships to support Israel. Despite the US' other engagements, Admiral John Aquilino, head of US Indo-Pacific Command, said Tuesday that America is still prepared to deter China.4
  • Ratner blames the incidents on China declining the US' 'invitations to open lines of military-to-military communication at the senior-most levels,' also noting that Sec. of Defense Lloyd Austin has spoken 'publicly and privately with allies and partners and frankly, privately with PRC counterparts.'1
  • The Pentagon's statements came a day after Canada said a Chinese fighter jet flew within 5 meters (16 feet) of a Canadian military plane over international waters near North Korea. In response, Beijing accused Canada of an 'illegal intrusion' into contested airspace with Japan.2

Sources: 1The Manila Times, 2Al Jazeera, 3Manila Standard and 4Sky News.

Narratives

  • Anti-China narrative, as provided by U.S. Department of Defense. It's bad enough that China has risked the safety of US aircraft and personnel almost 200 times, but when you include its behavior toward other countries, that number rises to nearly 300. China doesn't care about the rules of international airspace and thinks it's acceptable to conduct reckless flight maneuvers as some kind of show of force. This could easily result in a physical military conflict — something neither Beijing nor Washington wants.
  • Pro-China narrative, as provided by Global Times. By issuing this absurd statement, the US actually exposed itself as the aggressor in this airspace situation. The reason Beijing has flown aircraft near its US counterparts is because Washington, in 2022 alone, conducted over 600 close-space reconnaissance missions using spy planes. It's the US that disregards China's national sovereignty rights, not the other way around. This is yet another continuation of the US' xenophobic anti-China rhetoric.