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The White House has denied Beijing’s accusations that US spy balloons were over Chinese territory. Photos/Illustrations
WASHINGTON – United States of America (US) denies Beijing’s allegation that Washington had flown spy balloon over the airspace China allegations made when the US dropped a fourth “unidentified object” over the weekend.
The US has not linked the three objects to any country or destination, but Washington has publicly linked the first incident to China, saying the balloons were reconnaissance aircraft linked to the Chinese military.
The spy balloon crashed after being shot down by an F-22 fighter jet off the coast of South Carolina on February 4. China has claimed the plane, but said it was a weather balloon.
President Joe Biden’s administration has since said the balloon is part of China’s large fleet of reconnaissance balloons used to monitor more than 40 countries on five continents. Three other aerial objects have been shot down in the meantime, including an unidentified object shot down Sunday over Lake Huron.
China on Monday accused Washington of flying 10 spy balloons over Chinese airspace since January 2022, saying it was “very common” for the US to do so over other countries’ airspace, according to multiple reports.
The White House has sharply denied the accusations.
Read: Ministry of Foreign Affairs: US Balloons Enter Chinese Territory More Than 10 Times Since Early 2022
“We did not fly reconnaissance balloons over China,” the White House said.
US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the balloons the US identified as being controlled by China had provided limited additive capability to other PRC intelligence platforms used in the United States.
“But in the future, if the PRC continues to advance this technology, it could certainly become more valuable to them,” he said, referring to China’s formal acronym.
