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Russian and Chinese aircraft test South Korea's airspace
Summary
A joint China–Russia exercise on 22 December 2020 sent South Korean fighters into the air, while Russia also backed a government under rebel pressure in Africa.
What did South Korea's air force face on 22 December 2020? Seoul said it scrambled fighter jets after four Chinese and fifteen Russian military aircraft entered its air defense identification zone.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said China had notified it in advance of a joint military exercise between China and Russia. The prior notice, as reported at the time, placed the flights within a planned joint exercise by the two countries.
A second theatre for Russia
On 21 December 2020, a day earlier, Russia was also in the news over the Central African Republic. Rwanda deployed what it called a protection force after its peacekeepers were attacked by rebel forces advancing on the capital, Bangui. Russia sent troops and heavy weaponry to support the government.
The Rwandan and Central African Republic governments accused former President François Bozizé of backing the rebels and plotting a coup. He denied it.
Taken together, the two reports show Russian military activity on two continents within two days: air operations alongside China near the Korean peninsula, and reinforcements for a government facing an armed advance in Africa.
