Chinese fighter jets approach US aircraft in the East China Sea.

Chinese J-10 fighter jets intercepted a US Air Force RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft over the East China Sea on June 7, less than a month after a J-11 approached an EP-3 in the South China Sea.

Location of the East China Sea. Graphic: NOAA

CNN quoted US officials as saying that the Chinese J-10 fighter jet did not come within 30 meters of the US RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft, but it was flying at a "very high speed" when near the American plane. Because the Chinese aircraft was moving at a high speed and altitude comparable to the American plane, the "encounter" was considered unsafe.

The RC-135 was then on routine duty in international airspace over the East China Sea.

U.S. officials did not specify whether the American aircraft avoided the Chinese fighter jet or when the J-10 separated from the Chinese aircraft. They also did not clarify whether Washington would issue a diplomatic response following the incident. Beijing has also not commented.

This is not the first time Chinese fighter jets have approached American aircraft. On May 17, a Chinese J-11 fighter jet brazenly approached a US EP-3 reconnaissance aircraft while it was patrolling in international airspace over the South China Sea.

China's J-10 fighter jet. Photo: AusAirPower.

The incident on June 7th, in which a US aircraft was intercepted by Chinese fighter jets over the East China Sea, occurred as the US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (SED) concluded without significant results. Subsequent statements by US Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi indicated that the two governments remain deeply divided on several issues.

Regarding the situation in the South China Sea, Secretary of State Kerry reiterated Washington's position that the US does not take sides in the dispute, but all parties need to exercise self-restraint. Meanwhile, Yang Jiechi said China firmly opposes the lawsuit unilaterally filed by the Philippines, asserting that it will not accept the ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA).

Earlier, at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter emphasized that the US would not be discouraged and reiterated its "determination to continue to fly aircraft, sail ships, and operate wherever international law permits."

Tensions between the US and China in the South China Sea are high after China brazenly reclaimed land on numerous reefs it illegally occupied, turning them into artificial islands, while aggressively pursuing its militarization of the region.

The U.S. has stated that China's territorial claims lack legal basis. The White House has repeatedly dispatched ships and aircraft to patrol near the artificial islands that China has built, despite Beijing's anger.

According to Zing