A Su-35 fighter jet flown by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) intercepted an Australian surveillance aircraft over the South China Sea this week. In response to the hostile incident, Canberra accused Beijing of practicing an “unsafe and unprofessional interaction.” The Australian Government published its concerns in a statement, detailing that “The PLA-AF aircraft released flares in close proximity to the [Royal Australian Air Force] RAAF P-8A aircraft. This was an unsafe and unprofessional maneuver that posed a risk to the aircraft and its personnel.”

Back in 2023, U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) officials reported that Chinese fighters were increasingly engaging in unsafe interceptions of American and allied aircraft in international airspace. From 2021 to 2023, the DoD noted that more than 180 similar incidents occurred. Analysts have 

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