Global Times Accuses US Of Flying Spy Planes Near China Masked As Commercial Airliners

As China increases military drills around East Asia over the next couple of weeks, Global Times editor-in-chief Hu Xijin accuses the U.S. of flying spy planes, masked like commercial airliners, near China. 

Xijin said, “U.S. surveillance aircraft appearing like commercial airliner constantly fly near China. They even follow civil aviation flights to confuse Chinese radars. This poses a threat to safety of civil aircraft over the South China Sea. It’s shameful for the U.S. military to do so.” 

Xijin embedded a picture of a U.S. Air Force E-8C Joint STARS, which looks similar to a Boeing 737 narrow-body commercial aircraft (minus the two extra engines). He didn’t specify which spy planes the U.S. has been flying near China in commercial flight routes. 

The accusation comes as China and the U.S. have increased military activities in the East China Sea and the South China Sea. 

The U.S. has expressed serious concern about China’s “destabilizing activity” in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, as tensions between both superpowers continue to worsen.