The Pentagon detects a Chinese spy balloon over US territory

The Pentagon has detected what appears to be a Chinese spy balloon flying over US airspace in recent days, military commanders have confirmed. US forces considered tearing it down, at the request of President Joe Biden, but have decided against it due to the risk that the pieces could fall on people on the ground.

The balloon is flying “at a high altitude over the continental United States,” well above commercial air traffic, and the US government “continues to track and monitor it very closely,” Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder said. , it’s a statement. Its presence “does not represent a military or physical threat to people on the ground,” the spokesperson pointed out, adding that other “examples of this type of balloon activity have been previously observed in recent years.”

The US government has taken measures to prevent the device from collecting sensitive information, according to the statement from Ryder, which doesn’t provide any further details about the artifact or the targets he might have been looking for.

The White House was immediately informed of the presence of the supposedly Chinese artifact, and Biden asked military commanders to present him with possible options, said a senior official in the presidential office who spoke on condition of anonymity. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, visiting the Philippines, called a meeting of senior military commanders on Wednesday to discuss the situation.

In statements to the press, also on condition of anonymity, a military commander in the Pentagon has confirmed that “clearly, the purpose of this balloon is espionage.” According to this source, the US forces have even used manned aircraft to monitor the device. At one point he considered shooting it down while it was flying over the territory of the state of Montana. Civilian flights in the area were suspended and military aircraft were sent, including F-22 fighters, although the idea of ​​shooting down the aircraft was ultimately rejected due to the risk posed by the fragments.

The trajectory of the balloon, which entered the United States through Alaska and passed through Canada before continuing through the north of the continental United States, flies over “a number of sensitive places.” Montana, one of the most sparsely populated states in the country, is home to several nuclear weapons silos.

Although similar incidents have occurred in the past, in this case the time that the balloon has remained in US territory is striking, more than in other previous situations, according to the command. But the device does not appear to have particularly advanced technology or the ability to obtain information that Beijing could not obtain in other ways, for example through satellites.

“We consider that this balloon has limited added value from the perspective of intelligence collection, but we are still taking steps to protect against the collection of sensitive information by foreign intelligence services,” added the military. “We know exactly where it is, where it is going, and we are giving passes to be especially vigilant to mitigate any risk from foreign intelligence.”

The announcement about the detection of the artifact comes as Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to travel to Beijing this weekend to meet with Chinese authorities and try to reduce friction between the two rival countries. Blinken will be the first senior US official to visit the Asian giant since 2018, when relations between the two countries entered a stage of sharp deterioration as a result of the open trade war after the Administration of President Donald Trump imposed new tariffs on chinese products.

Added to the tensions over that measure are differences around Taiwan, the self-governing island ideologically close to Washington that Beijing considers part of its territory; the human rights situation, especially among the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang province and in Hong Kong; the military activities of the People’s Liberation Army in the waters of the South China Sea, and technological competition.

Blinken’s visit is the result of the meeting held by the respective presidents, Biden and Xi Jinping, in Bali last November, when both leaders met face to face for the first time since the American’s arrival at the White House and expressed their willingness to understanding.

Spy balloon detection can complicate that journey. According to the military commanders who spoke to the press at the Pentagon, the Defense Department has presented the case to their Chinese counterparts.

Washington considers China its main security threat, and has taken steps to strengthen the US military presence in the Indo-Pacific region, with the aim of countering the Chinese military’s rapid modernization. During Austin’s visit to Manila, the US and the Philippines announced an agreement that will allow greater access for US troops to four military bases in the Southeast Asian archipelago. In January, Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to step up their security cooperation, which will include revamping a US Marine unit stationed on the island of Okinawa.

Follow all the international information on Facebook Y Twitteror in our weekly newsletter.