A Chinese defense ministry spokesperson has cautioned against reading too much into the reported violation of Japanese airspace by a Chinese military plane this week.
Japan’s Defense Ministry said on Monday that a Chinese Y-9 intelligence-gathering aircraft flew over waters southeast of the Danjo Islands in Nagasaki Prefecture earlier that day. The ministry described the incident as the first confirmed case of an aerial intrusion by a Chinese military plane.
Chinese defense ministry spokesperson Wu Qian on Thursday addressed a question about it from a Chinese media organization.
Wu said the ministry has been paying close attention to media reports about the incident. He said China and Japan continue to communicate through diplomatic channels.
Wu added that China has always respected the sovereignty of other nations and said he hopes people will not over-interpret the incident.
When an NHK reporter asked about the details of what happened in the incident and what were the intentions, the spokesperson only repeated that China and Japan maintain communications through diplomatic channels.
China’s foreign ministry said the day after the intrusion that the country’s relevant offices were trying to confirm what happened.