Russian and Chinese strategic bombers completed their eleventh joint air patrol over the Asia-Pacific on 27 June, a six-hour mission that drew a military response from South Korea after the formation entered Seoul’s air defence identification zone (KADIZ) over the East Sea and South Sea. The Russian defence ministry in Moscow confirmed that Tu-95MS bombers and Chinese H-6K aircraft, escorted by Russian Su-30SM and Su-35S fighters alongside Chinese J-16 jets, operated over the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea and the western Pacific. Both Moscow and Beijing stated the patrol was conducted in strict accordance with international law and did not violate the sovereign airspace of any state.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff reported that its air force scrambled fighter jets before the Russian and Chinese aircraft entered the KADIZ, a buffer zone that is not sovereign airspace but where states expect prior notification. Seoul did not lodge a formal protest in this instance, though it had protested a similar patrol in December 2025. Japanese authorities, who also monitored that earlier mission and expressed “serious concern” at the time, had not issued an immediate public reaction to the latest flight. The Chinese defence ministry described the operation as a demonstration of the two militaries’ “determination and capability to jointly uphold regional peace and stability.”

Viewed from Beijing and Moscow, the patrols are a routine element of an annual military cooperation plan, with the 2026 iteration proceeding irrespective of the broader geopolitical environment. Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum earlier in June, characterised military and technical ties with China as traditional and not contingent on world events, describing the two countries as “natural allies.” The patrols are complemented by regular naval exercises, including the planned “Maritime Interaction-2025” drills in the Sea of Japan in August, and a first joint coast guard patrol in the northern Pacific in 2024. Both governments frame the cooperation as a factor for international and regional stability, deepening mutual trust and strategic coordination within frameworks such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and BRICS.

For regional actors, the patrols test the boundaries of air defence identification zones and the norms governing military activity in congested airspace. The KADIZ, unilaterally declared by South Korea, overlaps with zones claimed by China and Japan, creating a persistent source of friction. While no airspace violation occurred, the entry of nuclear-capable bombers into the zone without prior notification is viewed in Seoul as a pressure tactic. The absence of a formal protest this time may reflect a calibrated response, though the South Korean military’s statement that it had detected the aircraft in advance and deployed fighters signals continued vigilance.

The patrol concluded with all aircraft returning to their home bases. The next known step in the bilateral military calendar is the “Maritime Interaction-2025” naval exercise, expected to take place in the Sea of Japan in August, according to the Russian defence ministry’s cooperation plan.