Beijing on Wednesday rejected the German government’s allegation that a Chinese vessel had aimed a laser at a military jet over the Red Sea, as Berlin repeated its claim.

Information provided by Germany did not correspond with the facts known to the Chinese side, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said in Beijing.

According to Mao, the Chinese Navy was carrying out escort operations in the Gulf of Aden and in the waters off Somalia, fulfilling its responsibility to maintain security in the region.

Germany this week summoned the Chinese ambassador to Berlin over the incident, which took place in early July.

According to the German account, a Chinese warship aimed a laser at a German reconnaissance aircraft without any reason or prior contact.

The aircraft was travelling over the Red Sea as part of the EU’s Aspides military operation to help protect merchant ships from attacks by the Yemeni Houthi militia.

In comments to the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND) media group for publication on Wednesday, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul called on Beijing to explain its actions and said that Berlin would oppose any “irregular behaviour by China.”

The Foreign Ministry in Berlin later reiterated its position.

A spokeswoman insisted that the summoning of the Chinese ambassador was “certainly not done lightly,” being based on existing knowledge and thorough investigations.

The Defence Ministry also spoke of “clear indications” of laser use.

Source: dpa.com