Russia and China sent nuclear-capable bombers over the waters between Japan and South Korea, which are the treaty allies of the United States, for their ninth joint strategic air patrol on Friday.
Two American conventional bombers on Monday simulated the release of weapons over Finland, a NATO ally that borders Russia. For Japan and South Korea, the U.S. is committed to using its full range of military capabilities, including nuclear, to support extended deterrence.
The Chinese Defense Ministry said the joint bomber patrol was conducted over the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea in South Korea. It is located between the Japanese archipelago to the east, the Korean Peninsula to the west, and the Russian Far East region to the north. Newsweek has reached out to the defense ministries of Russia and Japan for comment by email.
In a brief statement, the Chinese air force said that the joint patrol, which was in accordance with the annual cooperation plan between the two nations’ militaries, aimed at “effectively testing and enhancing” the joint training and operational capabilities of the Chinese and Russian air forces.
The Chinese state media reported that this was the first time the country’s air force sent the H-6N, its first nuclear-capable air-to-air refuelable bomber, for a joint patrol with its Russian counterpart. At least one Russian bomber took part in this patrol. It was identified as the nuclear-capable Tu-95MS.
In the previous instance on July 25, which was the eighth Russia-China joint strategic air patrol since 2019, it involved the Chinese H-6K conventional bombers and the Russian Tu-95MS nuclear bombers, which saw them flying in formation over the Bering Sea off the U.S. coast of Alaska.
Russia and China are among the nine countries armed with nuclear weapons. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said that Russia possesses 4,380 nuclear warheads in its military stockpile, which is the world’s largest. China is estimated to have 500 nukes in its arsenal.
