by Bidisha Saha: If we were to mark the places around the world where the armies of the world’s superpowers could clash with each other, both the South China Sea and the Black Sea would top the charts. It used to be rare for the world’s most powerful countries to engage in dogmatism in international waters, but now it is a common sight.
The Pentagon has released a video indicating that a Chinese J-16 fighter performed maneuvers that forced a US Air Force reconnaissance aircraft to “fly through the interceptor aircraft’s wake turbulence”. US officials alleged that the Chinese fighter jet flew right into the nose of the US RC-135 Rivet joint aircraft over the South China Sea on May 26 as it was conducting “safe and routine operations” in international airspace. The close proximity of the planes created turbulence which was captured on video from the cockpit.
The RC-135V with its serial number 64-1484 (RC-135V Rivet Joint) is the aircraft referred to in the graphic below that was active in the South China Sea on May 26, based on data provided by open-source flight tracking websites. was based. Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense released a graphic on 27 May showing a J-16 detected on the same day of the intercept. A relatively short flight path lies in the area in which the RC-135 moved.
The two countries have been going through some rocky patches in their ties following former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in August 2022 and the US’s decision to shoot down a Chinese spy balloon over sensitive US military sites in February this year. ,
But such examples are no longer rare among world superpowers.
A similar instance of an interception between US and Chinese military aircraft occurred as late as December 21, 2022. In the South China Sea, which the US called ‘unsafe maneuvers’. The Chinese fighter plane with about 30 on board came within 20 feet of the nose of the American plane, forcing the larger and heavier American aircraft to maneuver.
The number of increasingly risky air intercepts carried out by Chinese aircraft is alarming as China becomes more aggressive which could lead to a crash or potentially unsafe incident.
China claims “indisputable sovereignty” over 90% of the South China Sea, based on a U-shaped nine-dash line, which includes several islands in the disputed body of water, some of which Beijing has now militarised. Have done – artificial islands built of rocks heavily fortified with missiles, runways and weapons.
In June 2022, a Royal Australian Air Force P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft was reportedly damaged by PLA J-16s over the South China Sea. Australia accused the crew of the Chinese jet of performing “dangerous manoeuvres”.
However, both Australia and the United States have rejected nearly all of Beijing’s territorial claims on the sea and are conducting regular exploration operations there, including US freedom of navigation operations (FONOP) through the South China Sea. In 2013, China added a tenth line to take over Taiwan in an effort to increase its power in the region.
Another area of flashpoint for the West is the Black Sea which has become highly charged with the changing dynamics of the Russia-Ukraine war.
The Mediterranean waters bordering the Atlantic Ocean lie off the southeastern edge of Europe and have long been the theater of international disputes. With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, there has been increased dynamics in the spheres of influence between the camps of the United States and its European allies, and between Russia and China.
In the first direct confrontation between Russia and the West, a US MQ-9 Reaper drone crashed into the Black Sea after a Russian Su-27 fighter jet was fueled, damaging its propeller.
A video released by the Pentagon shows two Russian Su-27 fighter jets flying close to a US drone, draining fuel and impacting propellers, about 75 miles southwest of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula. The head of Russia’s foreign intelligence service said the US “deliberately and provocatively” flew near its airspace.
US drones are known to carry out reconnaissance missions in and around Ukraine. The downed MQ9 drone was operating in international airspace – that is not under the jurisdiction of any one country – over the Black Sea.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said, “There’s been a pattern of behavior lately where there’s been a little bit more aggressive actions by the Russians.”
More broadly, Russia views the Black Sea region as vital to access to the Mediterranean and beyond: military operations outside its immediate neighborhood, protecting its economic and trade ties with major European markets, and Russian oil to southern Europe. and making more dependent on gas.