loading…
Australia says its military aircraft were laser-targeted by a Chinese Navy ship. Foto/airforce.gov.au
The Department of Defense in Canberra, on Saturday (19/2/2022), said the act of lighting the plane was potentially life-threatening.
According to the department, a P-8A Poseidon, a maritime patrol aircraft, detected a laser coming from a People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLA-N) vessel.
“The lighting of the plane by a Chinese ship is a serious safety incident,” the department said without specifying the date of the incident, as quoted by the statement Reuters.
Also read: Putin Oversees Massive Nuclear Exercises, Ukrainian President Meets Allies
“Actions like this have the potential to endanger lives. We strongly condemn the military’s unprofessional and unsafe actions.”
The department said the Chinese vessel was sailing east with another PLA-N vessel through the Arafura Sea at the time of the incident.
The sea lies between the northern coast of Australia and the southern coast of New Guinea.
The Department of Defense said the two ships had transited through the Torres Strait and were in the Coral Sea.
Relations between Australia and China, its main trading partner, soured after Canberra banned Huawei Technologies from its 5G broadband network in 2018, tightened laws against foreign political interference, and urged an independent investigation into the origins of COVID-19.
According to a report from Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), in 2019, Chinese maritime militia vessels began a series of laser attacks on Australian pilots while flying over the South China Sea.
(min)
–
