The Pentagon on Tuesday accused China of carrying out unprecedented intimidation efforts in Asia-Pacific airspace, with Chinese warplanes conducting increasingly risky maneuvers around American planes on operations or reconnaissance.
Beijing is conducting “a centralized and concerted campaign to authorize these risky behaviors in order to force the United States to change its operational activities” in the region, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asia Ely Ratner denounced to the press.
According to the Pentagon, most incidents in international airspace involve unsafe mid-air interceptions, intimidating maneuvers, Chinese warplanes approaching American planes too close or too quickly, or the dropping of flares.
The official cited “more than 180 incidents” since fall 2021, “more than in the last decade,” indicating increased aggressiveness by the Chinese army.
If incidents involving fighter aircraft from partner countries are taken into account, the number would be “almost 300,” he said.
On Monday, the Canadian government reported that a Canadian military aircraft was intercepted by Chinese warplanes over international waters, calling the maneuver “dangerous and reckless.”
“Ultimately, operating behavior like this can lead to accidents … and that can lead to unintentional conflicts,” Ratner said.
The Pentagon also said it would release images and videos of about fifteen such incidents, the most recent of which occurred in September.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has recently denounced the behavior of the Chinese Air Force several times.
Last June there was an incident involving a Chinese fighter jet and an American reconnaissance aircraft over the South China Sea.
At the time, the U.S. Army’s Indo-Pacific Command said the Chinese aircraft “flyed directly in front of and within 120 meters of the RC-135’s nose, forcing the U.S. aircraft to cross the turbulence in its wake.”
These repeated incidents come against a backdrop of high tensions between Beijing and Washington, particularly over Taiwan and after the flight of a Chinese balloon over American territory earlier this year, even as the two countries have resumed dialogue in a number of recent months Visiting senior American officials in Beijing.
However, Washington regrets that Beijing still rejects direct high-level communication between the two countries’ armies.