The South Korean military scrambled fighter jets earlier today after a total of six Russian military aircraft entered the Korean air defense identification zone.
Kim Ji-yeon at the defense ministry for us tonight.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said a Russian A-50 early-warning aircraft, three Sukhoi-27 fighter jets and two TU-95 bombers entered the Korean air defense identification zone Tuesday between 9:23 AM and 3:13 PM, Korea time.
What stood out during the intrusion... was that the TU-95 bombers stayed inside KADIZ for about two hours... flying in a U-shaped trajectory... near Korea's western port city of Pohang, the southernmost island of Jeju and then towards the northwesterly direction towards the West Sea.
The Joint Chiefs said the intrusion prompted the South Korean military to scramble some ten fighter jets and take measures to prevent the Russian aircraft from advancing closer to Korean airspace.
Including Tuesday's four entries,... Russian planes have entered KADIZ 20 times so far this year.
In July, Seoul's foreign and defense ministries summoned officials from the Russian embassy to lodge strong protests for entering KADIZ and Korean airspace.
The intent of the recent intrusions by the Russians are unspecified... but Seoul's defense ministry said the two countries will be holding a joint defense committee meeting... for two days in Seoul starting Wednesday.
"They are slated to discuss the signing of a memorandum of understanding on setting up a military hotline between their air forces... to prevent further accidental intrusions into each other's air defense identification zones.
Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News."