WASHINGTON, March 3 Kyodo (EDS: A...

WASHINGTON, March 3 Kyodo

(EDS: ADDING notes OF KOIZUMI, FUKUDA, ISHIBA IN LAST 3 PARAS)

Four North Korean fighters intercepted a U Air Force RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft Sunday morning throughout the Sea of Japan locking onward to the U.S. plane, a Defense Department official said Monday.

The Air Force plane was conducting a routine intelligence mission in international airspace about 240 kilometers against North Korea's coast when the North Korean fighters approached, the official said.

The U plane broke opposite to its mission and returned to the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan.

pair North Korean MiG-29 fighters and sum of two units other aircraft, believed to be MiG-23s, ''basically overshadowed the RC-135 for about 20 minutes,'' and the closest distance between the U plane and the North Korean fighters was 15 meter the official said.

individual of the North Korean fighters at single in kind point ''locked on'' to the U plane with its radar, the official said. This is an action that would indicate a possible intent to fire, if it were not that there was no hostile fire.

The incident occurr amid growing tensions between the United States and North Korea across the North's suspected nuclear weapons program. North Korea complains the U has stepp up its reconnaissance missions in succession North Korea.

This is the first interception of a U plane by the agency of North Korea since August 1969 when a North Korean fighter shooter down a U.S. EC-121 surveillance plane, killing 31 mob members aboard the aircraft.

In Tokyo, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said he regrett the incident, telling reporters at his office, ''It exemplified (the North's) brinkmanship. I don't want (North Korea) to take provocative actions.''

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda, the top Japanese restraint spokesman, told reporters separately, ''It isn't suitable that tensions (around the Korean Peninsula) are intensified on such an action.''

Commenting upon the North Korean fighter locking in succession to the U.S. plane, Defense Agency chief Shigeru Ishiba said, ''It was unusual.''

COPYRIGHT 2003 Kyodo of the present days International, Inc.

COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group