▲ This file composite photo, provided by Yonhap News TV on Aug. 21, 2020, shows Russian military aircraft entering South Korea's air defense identification zone, prompting the deployment of South Korean Air Force fighter jets. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Aug. 26 (Yonhap) -- Several Russian military aircraft briefly entered South Korea's air defense identification zone (KADIZ) above its eastern waters before exiting, prompting the Korean military to dispatch fighter jets in response, officials said Wednesday.

The Russian military aircraft entered the KADIZ near South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo and nearby Ulleung Island on Tuesday afternoon, before retreating from the air defense zone, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

"The South Korean military detected the Russian military aircraft before they entered the air defense zone and deployed Air Force fighter jets to prepare for any possible contingencies," the JCS said in a statement.

The aircraft did not violate South Korea's airspace, it added.

The air defense zone is not territorial airspace but is delineated to call on foreign planes to identify themselves so as to prevent accidental clashes.

It marked the latest such incident after nearly 10 Chinese and Russian military aircraft briefly entered and left the KADIZ above the country's eastern and southern waters in late June.

The defense ministry lodged a strong protest with China and Russia over the unauthorized entry at the time.

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