Malaysia's government will issue a "diplomatic protest against an intrusion" by Chinese military aircraft into its airspace, the foreign minister said. Foreign Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said late Tuesday that he will summon the Chinese ambassador to explain this breach of the Malaysian airspace and sovereignty.
Malaysia's air force had said on Tuesday that 16 Chinese military jets flew in a tactical formation over the South China Sea and nearly infringed on the country's airspace, calling it a threat to Malaysia's sovereignty. The air force said its radar picked up the jets flying in an in-trail formation near Malaysian airspace in eastern Sarawak state on Borneo on Monday.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea on historic grounds. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have overlapping claims, and tensions have ramped up since China built several man-made islands and turned them into military outposts. The strategically important area straddles some of the world's busiest sea lanes and is also rich in fisheries and may hold underground oil and natural gas reserves.
Malaysia said the jets then headed near Malaysian-administered Luconia Shoals, a rich fishing ground in the disputed South China Sea before moving nearly 60 nautical miles (110 kilometers) off the coast of Sarawak. After attempts to engage the jets failed, the air force said it sent planes to identify them. It found the planes were Ilyushin il-76 and Xian Y-20 strategic transporters flying at altitudes between 23,000 and 27,000 feet. The air force said it reported the flights to the foreign ministry.
This incident is a serious threat to national sovereignty and flight safety due to the air traffic density over the airways, it said in a statement.
-Inputs from agencies