Australia Calls China Navy Incident an ‘Act of Intimidation’
- Says laser pointed at Australian patrol plane was unprovoked
- Australia’s military condemns unprofessional, unsafe conduct
This article is for subscribers only.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison branded a Chinese navy vessel pointing a laser at one of his nation’s surveillance aircraft off the northern coast an “act of intimidation.”
The incident occurred three days ago when a P-8A Poseidon patrol plane detected a laser from a Chinese naval ship sailing east through the Arafura Sea, Australia’s Department of Defense said in a statement late Saturday. Morrison responded early Sunday in televised comments in Melbourne.