The United States on Saturday released a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the coast of Carolina after passing over a sensitive military site in North America and became the latest flashpoint in tensions between Washington and Beijing.
An operation was underway in US territorial waters to recover debris from the balloon, which had flown about 60,000 feet and was about the size of three school buses.
Before descending, President Joe Biden said Saturday, “We’ll take care of it,” when asked by reporters about the balloon. The Federal Aviation Administration and Coast Guard are working to clear the airspace and waters below.
Television footage showed a small explosion, then the balloon descended into the water.
The Biden administration has said it is moving forward with plans to shoot down a large Chinese balloon suspected of monitoring the U.S. military, bringing it down while it is above the Atlantic Ocean where the remains can be recovered, two U.S. officials said. said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive operation, said President Joe Biden had given his consent. In brief comments Saturday in response to reporters’ questions about the balloon, Biden said: “We’ll take care of it.”
The balloon was spotted early Friday morning over the Carolinas as it approached the Atlantic coast. In preparation for the operation, the Federal Aviation Administration closed airspace along the Carolina coast, including airports in Charleston and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina, until at least 2:45 p.m. EST Saturday. The FAA is diverting air traffic from the area and warning of delays due to flight restrictions.
The Coast Guard also advised mariners to leave the area immediately due to US military operations “which present significant danger.”
Officials are targeting the timing of the operation to recover as much debris as possible before it sinks into the ocean. The Pentagon previously estimated that the balloon, which was flying about 60,000 feet in the air, was about the size of three school buses and that it contained a large field of debris.
Biden wanted to land the balloon when he was first briefed on Tuesday, but Pentagon officials advised against it, warning that the potential risk to people on the ground exceeded Chinese intelligence’s assessment of potential.
The balloon disclosure this week led to the cancellation of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Beijing scheduled for Sunday for talks aimed at easing US-China tensions. The Chinese government on Saturday sought to downplay the cancellation.
“Actually, the U.S. and China have never announced any visit, the U.S. made the announcement as its own business, and we respect it,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Saturday morning.
China continues to claim that the balloon was simply a blown-up weather research “airship”. The Pentagon denies that is out of hand – as well as China’s claim that it is not used for surveillance and has only limited navigational capabilities.
The balloon was spotted over Montana, which is home to one of America’s three nuclear missile silo fields at Malmstrom Air Force Base.
The Pentagon also acknowledged reports of a second balloon flying over Latin America. “We are now determining that it is another Chinese surveillance balloon,” Brig. General Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, said in a statement.
China’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to questions about the second balloon.
Blinken, who will leave Washington for Beijing last Friday, said he had told senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi on the phone that sending the balloons to the US was “irresponsible and (China’s) decision to take this action. The night of my visit undermines the substantive discussion that has been prepared.
The uncensored reaction on the Chinese internet reflects the official attitude of the government that the US considers the situation. Some used it as an opportunity to mock US defense, saying it could not defend the balloon, and nationalist influence jumped to use the news to mock the US.
China has denied any claims of spying and says it is a civilian balloon-use for meteorological research. The Foreign Ministry insisted that the balloon’s journey was out of control and urged the US not to “smear” it based on the balloon.
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Associated Press writer Huizhong Wu in Taipei and researcher Henry Hou in Beijing contributed to this report.
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