Seoul, South Korea - The US military on Wednesday expressed regret for failing to notify South Korea well ahead of time about a recent air force drill that triggered a midair standoff with China.

The maneuver saw around ten American F-16 fighter jets fly into an area over the Yellow Sea between the South Korean and Chinese air defense identification zones, prompting Beijing to dispatch its own fighters to the site.

No clashes occurred, but South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back protested that Seoul had not been properly informed about the exercise, reports from South Korean media revealed.

In response to the accusations, US Forces Korea said in a statement Wednesday that its commander had spoken to Ahn and "expressed regret" that Seoul's defense officials had not been briefed on the drill "in time."

USFK "conducts regular training to maintain the highest level of readiness and ensure it can fulfill its mission," the statement read. It did not acknowledge whether the standoff with Chinese jets took place.

The US is a longstanding security ally of South Korea and currently stations 28,500 troops in the country as a deterrent against North Korea.

China is a crucial ally of North Korea and has been regularly at odds with the US. Over recent years, it has frequently butted heads with Washington over its support for Taiwan.

When asked on Monday about the stand-off with US military aircraft, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said that Beijing had monitored the activity and responded according to "laws and regulations."

"Regarding the US aircraft's activities in the relevant airspace of the Yellow Sea, the Chinese military tracked and monitored the activities and stayed on alert throughout the process," she said.