The US and Canadian fighter jets were forced to intercept Russian and Chinese nuclear-capable warplanes after they were detected near Alaska, CNN reports.
The US authorities said that although Russian Tu-95MS and Chinese Xi’an H-6 bombers were spotted near Alaska, the aircraft did not enter US or Canadian airspace.
According to a defense official, it was the first time that Chinese H-6 bombers entered the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone. The US F-16 and F-35 fighter jets and Canadian CF-18 fighter jets intercepted the bombers.
On 25 July, Beijing announced that the Chinese and Russian air forces organized a “joint strategic aerial patrol in the relevant airspace of the Bering Sea” as part of an annual cooperation plan between the two countries.
While commenting on the interception of aircraft, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that Russia and China are always testing the West and that entry of the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone wasn’t directly related to President Joe Biden’s decision to pull out of the 2024 presidential race.
“As to whether or not our adversaries are testing us at this particular time, they’re always testing us, and that’s no surprise to any of us.
We closely monitored these aircraft, tracked the aircraft, intercepted the aircraft, which demonstrates that … our forces are at the ready all the time, and we have very good surveillance capabilities,” emphasized Austin.
Earlier, China was accused of supplying Russia with a range of critical materials, including for the manufacture of cruise missiles, drones, and military optics for tanks and armored vehicles for its war on Ukraine.
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