The Air Self-Defense Force scrambled aircraft on Sunday as at least eight Chinese fighters and bombers — and possibly more than 40 — passed through a critical international entryway into the Western Pacific.
They used a legal but politically sensitive passage through Okinawa, apparently to send a message to Tokyo.
It was the first time Beijing is known to have sent fighter jets through the area, and comes days after Japan's defense minister announced plans to step up engagement in the disputed South China Sea.