China said Thursday that it had sent warplanes to patrol its newly declared maritime air defense identification zone, as a dispute over an island chain ratcheted up into a dangerous regional standoff. The move came after Japan and South Korea said Thursday that they had sent surveillance aircraft of their own into the area in the East China Sea. The United States has joined many of China’s neighbors in condemning the decision last week to establish the zone and defied Beijing by flying two B-52 bombers through the area Tuesday. Read More
