A Chinese military spy plane has violated Japan’s airspace for the first time

The Chinese military aircraft stayed in Japanese airspace for three minutes from about 11:29 a.m. to 11:31 a.m., according to Japan’s Defense Ministry. Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force scrambled fighter jets in response, but did not fire any weapons or rockets.

The Japanese Ministry of Defense also shared maps of the flight path of the Chinese Y-9.

According to the map, the Y-9 briefly enters the territorial airspace for the Danjo Islands before turning around to return to China.

In response to the incursion into its airspace by the Chinese plane, Japan warned China against further reoccurrence, with the Japanese Foreign Ministry saying that Vice Foreign Minister Masataka Okano had summoned a senior official from the Chinese embassy in Tokyo to discuss the matter.

China regularly operates military aircraft in international airspace, which international law allows. But Monday’s event, according to Japanese allegations, is the first time a Chinese plane has been publicly confirmed to have entered Japan’s territorial airspace.

The incident comes at a precarious time for Sino-Japanese relations, which have warmed in recent months after years of tense territorial disputes and trade conflicts. After a meeting with his Japanese counterpart last month, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said relations between the two nations were at a critical stage.

“China’s policy towards Japan has always maintained stability and continuity. It is hoped that the Japanese side will establish an objective and correct perception of China and pursue a positive and rational policy towards China,” Yi told Japan’s Yoko Kamikawa in July, for a foreign release from China. Ministry reading.

During the conversation, the two diplomats discussed various issues affecting the bilateral relationship, from the release of treated radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant last fall to matters related to Taiwan.

Although Monday’s incident marks the first reported violation of airspace, tensions in the air have long been a strain on the Sino-Japanese relationship. Between April 2023 and March 2024, Japan scrambled aircraft more than 600 times, mostly in response to Chinese military aircraft.