Why is China ‘buzzing’ Canadian, Australian planes? Here’s what you need to know

Chinese fighter jet pilots “buzzing” Canadian and Australian planes have broader implications for countering Chinese aggression in the Asia-Pacific region and efforts to enforce sanctions on North Korea.Experts say China’s behaviour in the skies above international waters is another example of its “bullying” tactics as it seeks to claim more territory beyond its traditional borders.“It’s not out of character for the new China that we’ve been seeing,” said Margaret McCuaig-Johnston, a senior fellow at the University of Ottawa’s Institute for Science, Society and Policy who studies China.“Under Xi Jinping we’ve seen a much more aggressive China, and we’re seeing it play out in all kinds of ways. … It has many layers to it, and this buzzing of Western planes is one more.”The dispute over exactly what constitutes Chinese airspace also risks international efforts to monitor United Nations sanctions on North Korea, those experts warn, further ratcheting up tensions in an already tense region of the world.Global News first reported, citing multiple government sources, that Chinese jets have repeatedly flown so close to a Canadian surveillance plane in the Asia-Pacific region that Canadian pilots could make eye contact with Chinese pilots, who have sometimes shown their middle fingers.Sources told Global News there have been approximately 60 of these types of intercepts with Chinese fighter jets since Christmas.

Over two dozen have been deemed dangerous.On Saturday, the Australian government confirmed Chinese fighter planes intercepted an Australian aircraft in the South China Sea Region late last month during a routine surveillance activity.