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According to images circulated on social media, Russia has deployed Su-57 stealth fighter aircraft with a frontline unit in the country’s Far East, near its quasi-ally China. Newsweek reached out to Russia’s Defense Ministry for further comment but received no response as of press time. The Chinese Foreign Ministry also did not respond immediately to a written request for comment.
### Why It Matters
Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, Russia has maintained what President Vladimir Putin described as a “partnership without limitations” with China. Both nations have deepened military ties to counter United States-led alliances in Europe and the Pacific.
Russia is the only country (besides the U.S.) that has developed radar-evading fifth-generation fighter jets, such as the Su-57. As part of its rapid military buildup, China has become the second nation after the U.S. to develop two types of stealth fighter aircraft—J-20 and J-35A.
### What To Know
A Telegram channel affiliated with the Russian Aerospace Forces shared images on August 21 showing a Su-57 jet flying alongside another of the same type, claiming these were the first stealth jets to enter service with a frontline combat regiment. The channel did not identify which combat regiment the aircraft belonged to.
Defense analyst Guy Plopsky suggested that both aircraft were presumably part of the Dzyomgi-based 23rd Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment (IAP), located in Khabarovsk Krai, northeast of Komsomolsk-on-Amur, a city in Russia’s Far Eastern region. Dzyomgi is approximately 186 miles from the Russia-China border and 413 miles from Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost main island.
### What People Are Saying
A Russian Telegram channel Fighterbomber wrote: “These are the first combat pilots and the first Su-57s to enter service with a combat fighter regiment.”
Lieutenant General Alexander Maksimtsev, First Deputy Commander in Chief of the Russian Aerospace Forces, said in an interview that, in accordance with the state defense order, the Aerospace Forces annually receive advanced and modernized weapon systems. The pace of deliveries of fifth-generation Su-57 aircraft is increasing, along with modern aviation strike systems and hypersonic weapons.
### What Happens Next
It remains to be seen whether Russia will expand its Su-57 fighter jet units in the Far East.
