An HQ-9 air defense missile system attached to a surface-to-air missile brigade of the air force under the PLA Central Theater Command fires surface-to-air missiles at simulated aerial target during a live-fire operation in mid-April, 2018. (eng.chinamil.com.cn/Photo by Zhu Jianghai)

The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force recently dispatched transport aircraft to deliver military goods to Serbia in a normal, prescheduled move, a spokesperson of Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Monday, after a record-breaking number of Chinese Y-20 cargo planes were spotted in Serbia on Saturday.

With foreign reports speculating that China delivered air defense missiles to Serbia, Chinese experts said that even if that is the case, Serbia's normal national defense development is justified and the delivery will not harm regional peace and stability.

In order to carry out an annually scheduled cooperation project between China and Serbia, China recently sent transport aircraft of the PLA Air Force to Serbia to deliver normal military goods, Zhao Lijian, spokesperson at China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a regular press conference on Monday, when a foreign reporter asked him to confirm if China recently delivered the HQ-22 air defense system to Serbia, and if the move was related to the current situation in Ukraine.

This project is not targeted at any third party, nor is it related to the current situation, Zhao said, noting that media should not interpret too much. 

Zhao's remarks came after foreign media reported on Sunday that a fleet of six Y-20 cargo planes of the PLA Air Force was spotted in Serbia on Saturday, with observers saying that it could be the largest overseas operation by the Chinese domestically developed large transport plane yet.

Those foreign reports, including one by the AP, speculated that the Y-20s could be carrying the FK-3, the export version of China's HQ-22 surface-to-air missile systems, for the Serbian military.

It is not known to the general public yet if the military goods delivered were the HQ-22 as speculated by the AP report or something else.

Fu Qianshao, a Chinese military aviation expert, told the Global Times that the cargo must be large and heavy to require so many Y-20s.

The reason why Y-20s were used for the delivery is probably because Serbia has no sea port, so transportation by sea is complicated, while an airlift is fast and efficient, Fu said.  

When further asked if the delivery could harm regional peace and stability, Zhao said, "When the US sold weapons to Europe and the island of Taiwan, did you care about if the move harmed regional peace and stability? China sold some normal military goods to Serbia. How would that harm regional peace and stability?"

If the military goods were indeed air defense missiles, they are for defensive purposes, and other countries have no reason to badmouth Serbia's normal national defense development, as Serbia used to be a victim of air raids, Fu pointed out.

On March 24, 1999, NATO started a 78-day bombing of Yugoslavia, causing thousands of casualties including three Chinese citizens, and displacing hundreds of thousands. Twenty-three years on, the US-driven NATO did not stop its expansion and aggression, fanning the flames of the Ukraine crisis and pressing China with groundless accusations.