The Chinese government has issued a warning to Canberra as it defended the actions of their pilot who intercepted a Royal Australian Air Force surveillance plane over the South China Sea last month.
China has warned Australia to be"cautious with its words" as it defended the actions of a Chinese pilot towards a Royal Australian Air Force plane last month.
Australia's Defence Department reported a Chinese J-16 jet intercepted a RAAF surveillance plane over the South China Sea last month. Picture: Supplied/Chinese Ministry of DefenceOvernight, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian suggested Canberra could face"serious consequences" if it did not respect the national security interests of China.
Beijing claims a number of small islands and reefs in the South China Sea and argued the waters and the airspace in the region belong to Beijing. There was a similar encounter in the sky involving a Chinese jet and a Canadian military plane where the crew was reportedly forced to take evasive action"to avoid a potential collision with the intercepting aircraft".
Mr Albanese - who is visiting Indonesia this week to strengthen ties with the long-term partner - labelled the actions by the Chinese pilot as a dangerous act of aggression.
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