South Korea scrambles jets after Russian military planes enter air defence zone

SEOUL, Aug 26 — South Korea scrambled fighter jets in response to Russian military aircraft breaching its air defence zone for the second time this year, the defence ministry announced. The incident occurred over the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, marking an escalation in tensions between the nations. The dispute deepened after South Korea aligned with Western sanctions in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and as Moscow bolstered its connections with North Korea.

Seoul's defence ministry disclosed that multiple Russian aircraft entered and subsequently exited the air defence identification zone before departing. They noted that their military spotted the Russian aircraft en route to the zone and readied fighter jets for any potential confrontations, though specifics were not disclosed. The Russian aircraft did not intrude into South Korean airspace, the ministry assured.

An air defence identification zone is a designated area where nations require foreign aircraft to confirm their identity for security reasons, but it does not constitute sovereign territory. Military entities typically inform the relevant country prior to entering such zones, though this is not legally mandated. In mid-June, over a dozen Chinese and Russian military aircraft had entered South Korea's air defence zone.

Beijing's defense ministry at that time stated that the Chinese and Russian forces had carried out a "strategic air patrol" across the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea, and the western Pacific Ocean. Russia's defense ministry characterized the patrol as an exercise of routine military cooperation plans and claimed it was "not aimed at third countries."

Despite Russia's assertions, South Korea continued to lodge protests with Beijing and Moscow, urging them to take steps to avert future occurrences.