MELBOURNE, 09 June 2022, (TON): Australia insisted that its patrol plane was in international airspace when a Chinese warplane intercepted it and released a cloud of small aluminium strips, known as chaff.
Albanese told a news conference Prime Minister Anthony Albanese responded curtly when asked about a spat between Canberra and Beijing over the May 26 incident, which Australia’s government has described as very dangerous.
Albanese told a news conference “this incident occurred in international airspace. Full stop.”
China’s defence ministry spokesman Tan Kefei said Tuesday that the Australian P-8A anti-submarine patrol aircraft came near the airspace of the disputed Paracel Islands known as Xisha in China.
Tan said “issued a warning to drive it away”.
He accused the Australian plane of threatening China’s sovereignty and security, and the government of spreading false information.