China has lodged a protest with New Zealand over a P-8A military aircraft patrolling the airspace and waters of the Yellow and East China Seas, accusing it of harassment and risking civil aviation safety. Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun called on Wellington to respect China's sovereignty and security concerns. New Zealand has yet to respond publicly.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Friday that a New Zealand P-8A anti-submarine patrol aircraft had conducted continuous close-in reconnaissance and harassment in the airspace and waters of the Yellow Sea and East China Sea.
He stated that such actions undermined China's security interests, heightened risks of misunderstandings and miscalculations, and severely disrupted civil aviation operations. "China urges New Zealand to strictly abide by international law and basic norms governing international relations, respect China’s sovereignty and security concerns, and safeguard the safety and order of civil aviation," Guo said.
This marks the first public comment from China on the patrol, with New Zealand yet to respond. Last month, Japan announced that a New Zealand P-8A stationed at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa would monitor illicit maritime activities—including ship-to-ship transfers involving North Korean-flagged vessels potentially breaching UN sanctions—from mid-March to mid-April.
It is the ninth such patrol by New Zealand since 2018, though it is unknown if the aircraft in question was part of this mission.
