(Sydney) The Australian Prime Minister denounced Tuesday to Beijing the “unacceptable” behavior of a Chinese fighter plane which allegedly fired flares into the path of an Australian navy helicopter over international waters.
The facts allegedly occurred on May 4 when this helicopter was flying over the Yellow Sea as part of measures put in place by the UN to enforce sanctions against North Korea, the Australian Department of Defense said. Monday evening.
The aircraft was reportedly quickly “intercepted” by a Chinese military plane by firing flares into its flight path, putting it in danger.
“We have just made it very clear to China that this is unprofessional and it is unacceptable,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told Australia’s Nine Network on Tuesday.
“I think Australians are waiting for an explanation as to how this could have happened.”
Mr Albanese said Canberra had raised its concerns through diplomatic and military channels, but had not heard back from Beijing.
In November, Canberra claimed that a Chinese warship injured Australian navy divers who were in the water by deliberately sending sonar pulses at them.
Beijing’s Foreign Ministry then insisted that the Chinese army had “always carried out professional operations in compliance with international law”.
Mr Albanese visited China last year, welcoming the restoration of trade and diplomatic relations after years of cold weather.
But security tensions remain as Australia has moved closer to the United States to curb China’s growing influence in the Asia-Pacific region.