US says Chinese jet conducted 'unnecessarily aggressive maneuver' intercepting US spy plane over South China Sea

A Chinese fighter jet conducted an "unnecessarily aggressive maneuver" during an intercept of a US spy plane in international airspace over the South China Sea last week, the US military said in a statement Tuesday.

The Chinese J-16 fighter cut directly in front of the nose of the US RC-135 Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft on May 26, forcing the US plane to fly through the wake turbulence of the intercepting aircraft. In video of the incident released by the US military, the turbulence is evident as it disturbs the US aircraft along its flight path.

The RC-135 was conducting "safe and routine operations" in international airspace, US Indo-Pacific Command said.

"The United States will continue to fly, sail, and operate - safely and responsibly - wherever international law allows, and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Joint Force will continue to fly in international airspace with due regard for the safety of all vessels and aircraft under international law," said the statement from INDOPACOM.

The intercept comes amid strained relations between the two countries following former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to the self-governing island of Taiwan last August and the US' decision to shoot down a Chinese spy balloon that transited over sensitive US military sites in February.

CNN has reported that the US is looking to arrange high-profile visits to China by senior officials to reengage with Beijing on substantive issues but on Monday the Pentagon said China had rejected a proposal for Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to meet with his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu at the Shangri-La Dialogue Security Forum in Singapore this week.

A defense official told CNN Monday that China declining the US' offer to meet is "far from the first time that the PRC has rejected invitations to to communicate" from Defense Department officials.