Japan and South Korea are reporting instances of Russian and Chinese warplanes flying together in close proximity to their respective airspaces, as well as entering South Korea’s Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ). The Russian Defense Ministry acknowledged that joint air patrols had taken place over the Sea of Japan and East China Sea after the fact. The ministry said, “For the first time in the history of aerial patrolling, Russian aircraft landed at an airfield in the People’s Republic of China and Chinese planes landed at an airfield on the territory of the Russian Federation.”
