New, yes, but that doesn't answer my question.

I don't see this as anymore aggressive than yearly war games, and significantly less aggressive than claiming islands and ocean territories that are contested and building military installations on them...

Yes it suggests our military has the right to defend our sovereign airspace and that of our allies as well as the ability and will to do so until these outrageous and arrogant acts of escalation stop.

Be careful how many times you prod the beast.

It suggests that there is something new in the air, deliberately obscuring its source and mission.