CANADIAN Prime Minister Justin Trudeau yesterday denounced the “irresponsible and provocative” actions of China after a recent encounter in international airspace over Asia.

The incident, which Canadian aircraft deployed in Japan encountered, and in some cases had to avoid colliding with, Chinese jets, has again raised tensions between Ottawa and Beijing, just as the crisis over the arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou in Canada in 2018 started to subside.

“China’s actions are irresponsible and provocative in this case, and we will continue to register strongly that they are putting people at risk,” the Canadian leader told reporters.

Canada last week accused the Chinese air force of unprofessional and risky behaviour during the incidents.

Canadian aircraft are deployed in Japan as part of a multinational effort to enforce United Nations sanctions against North Korea, which has faced international penalties over its nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles programme.

The Canadian crew, in some instances, had to swiftly modify their flight path to “avoid a potential collision with the intercepting aircraft”, said the Canadian military in a statement last week.

And Chinese planes at times tried to divert Canadian aircraft from their flight path and flew so close that the crew was “very clearly visible”.

Trudeau said these actions are “not respecting decisions by the UN to enforce UN sanctions on North Korea”.

Canada and China’s relationship severely deteriorated following Meng’s arrest at the request of the United States, and the subsequent detention of ex-diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor, both Canadian citizens, by China.

All three were finally released in September last year.

Australia on Sunday also accused China of having endangered one of its military aircraft over the South China Sea on May 26.

Beijing yesterday warned Australia to “act prudently” or face “serious consequences” after the accusation. – AFP, June 7, 2022.