TOKYO -- Japan scrambled fighter jets 523 times to intercept Chinese military aircraft between April and December, the second-highest total for the period, raising security tensions between the two countries ahead of President Xi Jinping's state visit this spring.
The 523 scrambles by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force represent a 9.9% increase on the year, data released Wednesday by the Ministry of Defense shows. Most interceptions took place over the East China Sea, home of the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands -- which Beijing claims and calls the Diaoyu.
