The White House responded Wednesday to a dangerous incident involving a Chinese fighter jet. The aircraft intercepted an American Air Force plane in international airspace over the South China Sea. The White House said it “was unsafe” and “unprofessional.”
The video shows the Chinese jet cutting in front of the nose of the American aircraft and forcing it to fly through turbulence.
“You can see that they forced…our C-135 to go through the jet wash of the Chinese fighter, which just tells you how close it was, several hundred feet. That’s dangerous.”
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby added the need for open dialogue with China.
China’s military says the U.S. reconnaissance plane deliberately intruded into its training area, adding the move seriously undermined regional peace and stability.
China claims jurisdiction over much of the sea, but international law considers it open airspace.