Two NORAD fighters monitoring PRC bomber activity over the Bering Sea. Credit: NORAD.

China’s Ministry of National Defence announced that the Chinese and Russian militaries participated in a joint strategic aerial patrol over the Bering Sea, the divide between the Russian Far East and Alaska, on Thursday 25 July 2024.

According to one Chinese defence spokesperson, Zhang Xiaogang, the exercise was designed to enhance their coordination and “deepen the strategic mutual trust.” It is the eighth exercise of its kind since 2019, Zhang added.

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A day earlier, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) – a unique bi-national command between Canada and the US – revealed that it had detected, tracked and intercepted two Russian TU-95 and two People’s Republic of China (PRC) H-6M bombers operating in the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

The Tupolev TU-95 has been built in many variants but was originally constructed as a strategic, intercontinental heavy-payload bomber aircraft. The Russian Air Force 37th Air Army operates the Tu-95MS (Tu-95M 55 Bear H) in four units.

China’s Xi’an H-6M is similarly based on a Soviet, Cold War-era design, the Tu-16; it remains the primary bomber aircraft in the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF).

“PLAAF units have also been increasingly training to conduct long-range strikes,” the China Aerospace Studies Institute notes in a primer on Chinese air power. “This can take the form of H-6 formations practicing simulated strikes on Guam or strike capable multi role fighters or fighter-bombers flying trans-regional flights within the PRC.”

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It should be noted that an ADIZ can extend beyond a nation’s territory, allowing them to respond in time to potentially hostile aircraft.

“Noting that the operation did not target any third party… it complied with relevant international laws and practices, and was not related to any current international or regional situation,” reiterated the PRC.

NORAD stated that the aircraft remained in international airspace: “This Russian and PRC activity in the Alaska ADIZ is not seen as a threat, and NORAD will continue to monitor competitor activity near North America and meet presence with presence.”