Japan's defense minister said the use of flares was a legitimate response to airspace violation and "we plan to use it without hesitation."

Japanese fighter jets fired warning flares at a Russian reconnaissance plane after it repeatedly breached the neighbouring country’s airspace, Tokyo said, as tensions rise over Moscow’s increasing military cooperation with China in the region.

In a rare move, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) scrambled F-15 and F-35 fighter jets from the Northern Air Defense Forces to intercept a Russian IL-38 patrol aircraft that violated Japanese airspace.