China says it scrambled fighter jets to monitor US and Japanese planes as they flew in its newly declared air defence zone in the East China Sea on Friday. The zone covers territory claimed by China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea.
China said last week that all aircraft crossing through the zone must file flight plans and identify themselves or face "defensive emergency measures".
The US, Japan and South Korea say they have since defied the ruling and flown military aircraft in the area.
The United States and its allies appear to be trying to call China's bluff over its new air defence perimeter.
Japan, South Korea and the United States have all flown what they called patrols through the zone, in defiance of China's instruction to identify themselves and maintain radio contact.
China now says it has scrambled fighters for the first time to identify and monitor intruders - the first indication that it may be prepared to risk an encounter in the air above the East China Sea.
The contest is threatening to develop into a war of nerves as the US and its allies seek to test China's true intentions and how far it is prepared to go in enforcing the new zone.
Beijing may have intended its move to increase pressure on Japan over disputed islands but it is also risking a broader confrontation with Washington, which remains the overwhelming naval power in the western Pacific.
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