China on Dutch ship: The Netherlands previously stated that Chinese military jets were engaged in an “unsafe” operation in the East China Sea. China’s defense ministry has condemned this claim and warned the Dutch navy against provocative activities, urging them to be careful.
A ministry official, Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang, stated, “The People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theatre Command responded with verbal warnings and scrambled fighter jets to forcefully drive away a helicopter from the Dutch navy’s Tromp frigate that provocatively intruded east of Shanghai.”
The Dutch defense ministry stated in a statement last week that two Chinese fighter planes repeatedly circled over its ship on Friday.
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According to Reuters, the HNLMS Tromp was policing the area in support of an international UN coalition that was assisting in the enforcement of maritime sanctions against North Korea that the UN Security Council had imposed.
Two Chinese planes and a PLA helicopter then approached the ship’s NH90 maritime combat helicopter as it was on patrol, according to the statement.
This led to a possibly dangerous circumstance. According to the Dutch minister of defense, the event happened in international airspace.
“HNLMS Tromp is currently en route to Japan, continuing its scheduled journey as a member of Pacific Archer 24.”
The Dutch statement, according to China’s defense ministry, “distorted the facts,” and the PLA’s actions were “completely legal and reasonable.”
