China rejects U.S. claim of unsafe intercept

BEIJING — China on Thursday rejected U.S. claims that its fighter jets maneuvered unsafely when they intercepted a Navy reconnaissance plane over the South China Sea, and demanded the U.S. end such missions close to Chinese territory.

The Chinese jets monitored the U.S. plane from an acceptable distance and operated in a safe and professional manner, Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told journalists at a scheduled news briefing.

“According to the related Chinese authorities, the U.S. allegation is not true,” Hong said.

Frequent reconnaissance missions by U.S. Navy vessels’ aircraft off the Chinese coast jeopardize China’s sea and air safety, Hong said.

“We urge the U.S. to immediately stop spying activities and prevent such events from happening again,” he said.

The Pentagon said two Chinese J-11 fighters flew within about 50 feet of the U.S. EP-3 Aries aircraft Tuesday, forcing the U.S. pilot to descend sharply to avoid a collision. It said the U.S. plane was conducting routine operations in international airspace. It characterized the incident as an unsafe intercept and said it is being reviewed.

The U.S. has sought to prevent such confrontations through frequent communication and the signing of an agreement on handling unexpected encounters at sea and in the air.

Defense Department spokesman Peter Cook on Thursday disputed Chinese officials who rejected U.S. claims that its fighter jets maneuvered unsafely.

“There were two Chinese aircraft that approached and our air crew felt that the approach was not conducted in the safest — a safe and professional manner,” Cook said. “That’s the concern that we have and that’s what’s being reviewed at this time.”

He said the U.S. is confident the American crew was flying in international airspace.