(Photo: Kyodo/VNA)

This is the sixth joint aerial patrol in accordance with an annual military cooperation plan between China and Russia since 2019, according to the statement.

Last November, Russian TU-95 bombers and SU-35 fighter jets and Chinese H-6K bombers jointly patrolled the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea.

Japan's Air Self-Defense Force scrambled fighter jets to the airspace and expressed concern to Russia and China through diplomatic channels.