The US military says one of its planes had to take evasive action to avoid hitting a Chinese military fighter jet that used an unsafe maneuver to intercept it over the South China Sea earlier this month.

It says the Chinese fighter flew in front of the US plane's nose and came within 6 meters of it.

The US Indo-Pacific Command says in a statement that the incident occurred on December 21 when a US Air Force aircraft was conducting routine operations in international airspace over the sea.

The statement calls for all countries in the Indo-Pacific region "to use international airspace safely and in accordance with international law."

It says the US Indo-Pacific Joint Force is dedicated to a free and open Indo-Pacific region. It adds that the force will continue to fly, sail and operate at sea and in international airspace "with due regard for the safety of all vessels and aircraft under international law."

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin raised concerns about the recent behavior of Chinese military aircraft in the region in November when he met with China's Defense Minister Wei Fenghe. Austin said their "increasingly dangerous behavior" increases the risk of an accident.