Japan scrambles aircraft over suspected China drone near Taiwan

Japan scrambles aircraft over suspected China drone near Taiwan

Japan said Tuesday it scrambled aircraft after detecting a suspected Chinese drone off an island near Taiwan that has been drawn into a weeks-long diplomatic spat between Tokyo and Beijing.

The drone was spotted off Japan's Yonaguni, an island where Tokyo is planning to deploy missiles in a move that has angered Beijing.

"We confirmed that an unmanned aerial vehicle believed to be Chinese, passed between Yonaguni Island and Taiwan on Monday," Japan's defence ministry said on X.

The regional Japan Air Self-Defense Forces "scrambled aircraft" in response, it said.

Beijing-Tokyo relations have soured this month, following remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggesting that Tokyo could intervene militarily in an