US Authorities Track Suspicious Chinese Spy Balloon
The US is monitoring a suspected Chinese spy balloon hovering over American territorial skies these past few days.
Tension is already high between the US and China and the recent sight of an unidentified flying surveillance balloon doesn’t help. There are ongoing issues between Taiwan and China where the US plays as a mediator.
The Pentagon announced Thursday that it would boost the military appearance near Taiwan. The US even plans to extend the number of military distributors in the Philippines. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin confirmed this during his visit to Manila.
This is what Trumps response to the Chinese Spy Balloon would look like if he was still president pic.twitter.com/jMyqml6hnq
— Harrison (@HarrisonKrank) February 3, 2023
Officials from the Defense said they are sure the “high-altitude spy balloon” is from China. The department reportedly saw it recently above the western side of Montana.
Pentagon spokesperson Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told NBC News, “The United States government has detected and is tracking a high-altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now.”
He confirmed that they are continuously tracking it closely. Ryder said, “Once the balloon was detected, the U.S. government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.”
I’m sure the Chinese would sit idly by with their thumbs up their ass while we floated spy balloons over their country…
We are showing our weakness day in and day out and unfortunately for the rest of the western world it’s contagious.
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) February 3, 2023
Aside from the area of Montana. officers have seen the spy balloon flying over the Aleutian Islands and Canada. In addition, one defense official confirmed that it is still in the US but refused to share its exact location.
Although the US government is possibly profiling the Chinese flying spy balloon’s privacy threat, officers can’t recommend taking it down. The safety of people on the ground can be at risk due to the potential of falling debris.
A senior official laid out the options to president Biden. Moreover, the official also confirmed that Biden agreed and provided a “strong recommendation” not to take it down.
Chinese Spy Balloon
In addition, the senior official added, “Instances of this activity were under observation over the past several years, including prior to this administration. We acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.”
Chinese spy balloon flying over
U.S. right now, Pentagon sayspic.twitter.com/1EKZpCd5xC— Clown World ™ 🤡 (@ClownWorld_) February 3, 2023
The defense official has contacted the Chinese government as they are confident that the balloon belongs to them. However, the official didn’t confirm that China admitted it was theirs.
Moreover, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday that China is still studying the speculation. Although they also confirmed that the hype isn’t helping while they are still assessing the facts.
A Chinese spokesperson stated at the briefing, “China is a responsible country that always abides by international law and has no intention of infringing on any country’s territory and airspace.”
On Friday, the Foreign Ministry verified that the surveillance balloon is from China. “The airship is from China. It is a civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological, purposes.” This is according to a report from NBC News.
The spokesperson added, “The Chinese side regrets the unintended entry of the airship into US airspace due to force majeure. The Chinese side will continue communicating with the U.S. side and properly handle this unexpected situation caused by force majeure.”
