What’s Albo of Oz up to?
On May 6, the Australian federal government accused a Chinese fighter jet of endangering a naval helicopter by firing flares into its path. Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles declared the incident an unsafe manoeuvre which posed a risk to the aircraft and personnel.[1] The Australian Prime Minister claimed the Australian Defence Force (ADF) was in “international waters” simply working to enforce United Nations (UN) sanctions on the DPRK (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea a.k.a “North Korea”). The ADF later stated that a Chengdu J-10 fighter jet from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) released flares into the flight path of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) MH-60R helicopter, which was “unsafe and unprofessional” on behalf of the China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force.[2] From the PRC, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian stated that what had occurred was that the Australian military aircraft flew near China’s airspace in a threatening way, and the Chinese military took necessary measures at the scene to warn and alert the Australian side in a manner consistent with the PRC’s laws and regulations and was professional and safe.[3]
Western provocations
Logic and reason verify the PRC’s version of events. The ADF Seahawk chopper flew from the Australian Navy ship HMAS Hobart which was operating in the Yellow Sea, which is located some 8500 kilometres from the nearest coastline of Australia. What is more, the incident itself took place just a few hundred kilometres from the PRC’s capital of Beijing.[4] In September last year, the ADF announced it was launching Operation Argos as part of an “international effort to eliminate nuclear weapons” in the DPRK.[5] Yet this is but a threadbare cover for outrageous military provocations against both the DPRK and its neighbour and ally, the PRC. It is impossible to attempt to police and surveil the DPRK without endangering the PRC given its immediate geographical proximity.