South Korea scrambles fighter jets after Russian aircraft enter air defence zone

The South Korean military scrambled fighter jets in response to several Russian military aircraft entering the Korea Air Defence Identification Zone (KADIZ), located over the country’s eastern waters, before eventually leaving the zone.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Wednesday that the Russian military aircraft entered the KADIZ near South Korea’s easternmost islands of Dokdo and Ulleung on Tuesday afternoon (25/8), before withdrawing from the air defence zone.

“The South Korean military detected the Russian military aircraft before they entered the air defence zone and deployed Air Force fighter jets to prepare for any possible situation,” the JCS said in a statement.

The JCS added that the aircraft did not violate South Korean airspace.

The incident is the latest occurrence after nearly 10 Chinese and Russian military aircraft briefly entered and then left the KADIZ over the eastern and southern waters of South Korea in late June.

At that time, South Korea’s Ministry of National Defence lodged a strong protest with China and Russia over the entry of the aircraft without prior notification.