Military Build-up in the Far East

Update December 12: China and US independently downplayed Sino-Japanese Tensions, coming at a time when US Trump faces the Thailand-Cambodia Conflict flaring up again and resulting in half a million refugees, a conflict he had earlier declared "having already ended" under his guidance.

What began as a joint exercise of Chinese and Russian forces
has turned into a dangerous confrontation of US-backed Japan:

Tokyo said that US fighter jets with nuclear strike capabilities flew over the Sea of Japan together with Japanese fighter jets. Previously, China and Russia held joint exercises in the sea and air near Japan and South Korea.

Japan's Ministry of Defense issued a statement on Thursday (December 11) saying that Japan and the United States reiterated their firm defense against any unilateral attempt to use violence to change the status quo and confirmed the preparations between the Self-Defense Forces and the US military.

Two US military B-52 fighter jets flew together with three Japanese F-35 stealth fighters and three F-15 fighters.

On Tuesday, Chinese and Russian warplanes flew jointly in the East China Sea, as well as in the western Pacific. And "Japan accuses Chinese fighter jets of attacking Japanese fighter jets in last weekend's fire control radar locking." China denied it. Washington called the incident "unconstructive to regional peace and stability" and reiterated its unwavering alliance with Japan.

[DW Chinese on December 11, 2025]

The flight of two U.S. B-52 strategic bombers with three Japanese F-35 stealth fighters and three F-15 air-superiority jets was the first time the U.S. had asserted its military presence since China began military exercises in the region last week amid heightened tensions between Tokyo and Beijing.

However, a U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, played down the bomber flights, saying they were pre-planned well before the Chinese-Russian drills and that U.S. and Japanese military aircraft carried out similar joint sorties last month, also involving U.S. B-1B bombers.

At the White House, spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said U.S. President Donald Trump can maintain both a "good working relationship" with China and a "very strong alliance" with Japan, even as tensions have risen between those two countries.

[Reuters on December 12, 2025]

China's aircraft carrier Liaoning entered US–Japan
airspace, cutting off Japan's reinforcement line !

China and Russia reportedly joined forces, with
15 fighter jets illegally flying over Japan's border

Russia-China Patrol Ratttles Japan

Russia has deployed TU-95 nuclear-capable bombers over the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea, with Japan responding by scrambling fighter jets to monitor the situation. The Russian bombers, escorted by Su-35 and Su-30SM fighters, flew within Japan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) but did not enter sovereign airspace.