Japan urges China to stop flying fighter jets too close to its military planes, fears collision
Japan's Defense Ministry said a Chinese JH-7 fighter-bomber flew as close to 30 meters (98 feet) to a YS-11EB electronic-intelligence aircraft of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force on Wednesday and Thursday.
The ministry said it occurred outside Japanese airspace over the East China Sea and caused no damage to the Japanese side.
China had no immediate comment on the latest incident. Previously, Beijing has alleged Japan flew close to its aircraft and was spying on China's ordinary military activity and demanded Japan stop its actions.
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Japan is concerned about China's acceleration of its military buildup, especially in Japan's southwestern areas.
Japan's Foreign Ministry said in a statement late Thursday that its vice minister Takehiro Funakoshi expressed 'serious concern' to Chinese Ambassador to Japan Wu Jianghao and strongly requested Beijing to stop the activity that could 'provoke accidental collisions' and strongly urged China to ensure that similar actions are not repeated.
The countries traded accusations over similar close encounters last month. Japan said a Chinese combat aircraft flew extremely close to Japanese navy P-3C surveillance aircraft over the Pacific Ocean, where two Chinese aircraft carrier s were seen operating together for the first time.
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New Indian Express
32 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Jaishankar calls for 'uncompromising' action against terrorism at SCO meet
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First Post
37 minutes ago
- First Post
How Donald Trump's weapon deal with Ukraine is inviting Maga ire
US President Donald Trump's decision to send weapons to Ukraine to help its defence against Russia has some in the Make America Great Again (Maga) movement irate. Here's what some leading figures in Maga land including Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene and Steve Bannon are saying and the potential fallout read more US President Donald Trump has taken a harsher line on Vladimir Putin recently. Reuters File Since the moment he announced he was running for president, Donald Trump's base has had unshakable faith in him. They stayed with him through the Access Hollywood tape when it looked like his campaign was at an end. They remained loyal after he was defeated by Joe Biden in the 2020 election and during the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol. Trump himself had boasted about his followers' loyalty, saying he could probably get away with shooting someone on 5th Avenue. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD However, seven months into his second term, the Make America Great Again (Maga) movement seems to be growing more upset with Trump. Why is this happening? Because of the Ukraine war, which Trump vowed to end 'within 24 hours' of taking office. But it's not so much as the war continuing itself. More specifically, it's about Washington sending weapons to Kyiv to defend itself. But what happened? What is Maga world saying? Let's take a closer look: What happened? Trump returned to the Oval Office as the 'anti-war candidate'. He claimed that Kamala Harris getting the top job would make World War III an inevitability. He vowed to bring an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine quickly and painlessly. He had criticised the US' proclivity to get into 'forever wars' or endless wars. He repeatedly vowed that he was going to 'stop wars' instead of starting them. 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STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Surface-to-air missile launchers of the Patriot (Wisla) system newly added into the Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) at an army base in Sochaczew, Poland. File image/Reuters Former Trump strategist Steve Bannon, who many during the first term referred to as 'Trump's brain', also slammed the decision. Bannon on his podcast called the Ukraine conflict a "European war". 'Ukraine is getting so dangerous", Bannon said. 'It's a European war. Let Europe deal with it'. 'They have the resources. They have the manpower'. 'We're about to arm people we have literally no control over', Bannon added. 'This is old-fashioned, grinding war in the bloodlands of Europe - and we're being dragged into it'. A former Trump campaign official said Europe buying the weapons somewhat mitigates the anger from the Maga base. 'But we still hate it,' the official told Politico. 'This is not our war, and escalation isn't in America's interest'. 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A Reuters poll also showed 58% of Republicans tended to agree with the statement 'the problems of Ukraine are none of our business, and we should not interfere.' A majority of Republicans (63-34) also oppose sending weapons and money to Ukraine. Remember, the base right now is already irate at Trump over his handling of the files related to the Jeffrey Epstein allegations. While Trump has called on his supporters to 'move on' from the Epstein saga, many Maga supporters show no signs of being inclined to do so. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD However, history shows that the Maga faithful have always trailed in the direction that Trump led them in. While the idea of conducting strikes on Iran initially repulsed some on the right, eight in 10 Republicans afterwards backed up their Commander-in-Chief. Since so many in Maga land have stuck with Trump through thick and thin, it is unlikely that Ukraine will be the final straw. With inputs from agencies
The Print
an hour ago
- The Print
Fight terror, separatism, extremism—Jaishankar's message at SCO meet, as Pakistan minister looks on
The Indian External Affairs Minister added: 'The UN Security Council, of which some of us are currently members, issued a statement that condemned it in the strongest terms and underlined the need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice. We have since done exactly that and will continue doing so.' 'The three evils that SCO was founded to combat were terrorism, separatism and extremism. Not surprisingly, they often occur together. Recently, we in India witnessed a graphic example in the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April 2025. It was deliberately conducted to undermine the tourism economy of Jammu and Kashmir, while sowing a religious divide,' Jaishankar said in his remarks during the meeting. New Delhi: The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) must be 'uncompromising' in its fight against 'terrorism, separatism and extremism'. That was External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar's message at the foreign ministers' conference in Tianjin Tuesday, delivered in the presence of Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. Jaishankar is on a two-day visit to China from 14 July till 15 July. He held a number of bilateral meetings with Chinese leaders Monday during his visit to Beijing. He also called on Chinese President Xi Jinping. Tuesday was the meeting of the foreign ministers in Tianjin, which is set to host the Heads of State summit later this year. This is the first visit by the Indian External Affairs Minister to China since the clashes in Galwan in the summer of 2020. Ties between India and China cratered following the clashes. The political thaw in ties was initiated following the announcement of an agreement to disengage at the friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) last October. 'We will continue to positively approach new ideas and proposals that are genuinely for our collective good. It is essential that such cooperation is based on mutual respect, sovereign equality and in accordance with territorial integrity and sovereignty of member states,' said Jaishankar in his message to the organisation. He is the third Indian leader to visit China in the last month as a part of the different meetings under the SCO umbrella, before the leaders summit later this year. It is one of the few forums where both India and Pakistan interact. Jaishankar's message on terrorism and territorial integrity came a couple of months after the 87-hour conflict between India and Pakistan in May 2025. On 22 April, terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam killed 26 people. India launched Operation Sindoor in retaliation, targeting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan. Islamabad further escalated the situation hitting Indian military infrastructure, which led to the short conflict between the two neighbours. Last month, the defence ministers' meeting of the SCO was unable to reach a consensus for a joint statement because they couldn't agree on the language on terrorism. Pakistan had objected to references regarding the Pahalgam terrorist attack, which led to no joint statement being issued. Also read: China offers 'constructive' help in settling India-Pakistan disputes, defends 'friendship' with Islamabad Afghanistan & economic engagement Jaishankar called on the members of the SCO to 'step up' development assistance to Afghanistan, promising that India will do so as well. The Taliban regime has been in control of Afghanistan since 2021. Russia, also a member of the SCO, recently moved to recognise the Taliban-led government in Kabul. 'Afghanistan has been long on the SCO agenda. The compulsions of regional stability are buttressed by our longstanding concern for the well-being of the Afghan people. The international community, particularly SCO members, must therefore step up with development assistance. India, for its part, will certainly do so,' Jaishankar said. With regards to deepening economic collaboration between members of the SCO, Jaishankar pushed for the promotion of the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a transport corridor that links Russia to India via Central Asia. The INSTC is different from China's own Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which is President Xi's landmark infrastructure initiative. Jaishankar's promotion of the INSTC, which was envisioned in 2000, marks New Delhi's attempt to suggest an alternative to the BRI. (Edited by Viny Mishra) Also read: Why do we pretend SCO still works? China runs it, shields Pakistan, sidelines India
