The US navy is monitoring a suspected Chinese spy balloon that has been flying over northwestern America in current days.
A senior defence official stated the US has “very high confidence” it’s a Chinese high-altitude balloon and was flying over delicate websites to gather info.
“Clearly the intent of this balloon is for surveillance,” the official stated.
China has not but commented.
The balloon was noticed over Billings, Montana, on Wednesday – near one of many US’s three nuclear missile silo fields at Malmstrom Air Force Base.
It additionally flew over the Aleutian Islands, off the coast of Alaska, and thru Canada.
The balloon continues to be in US airspace however officers declined to say the place it’s now.
They acknowledged it was working above civilian air site visitors and beneath “outer space” however declined to say how excessive it was flying.
Military and defence leaders have thought-about capturing the balloon out of the sky however determined in opposition to it as a result of potential security threat from falling particles.
US defence secretary Lloyd Austin convened a gathering of senior navy and defence leaders to evaluation the menace profile of the balloon and doable responses, which had been offered to US President Joe Biden on Wednesday.
The US has engaged Chinese officers “with urgency” and communicated the seriousness of the state of affairs.
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Pentagon press secretary Brigadier General Patrick Ryder stated: “The United States government has detected and is tracking a high-altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now.
“The US authorities to incorporate Norad (North American Aerospace Defense Command), continues to trace and monitor it carefully.
“The balloon is currently travelling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground.
“Instances of this sort of balloon exercise have been noticed beforehand over the previous a number of years.
“Once the balloon was detected, the US government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.”
China and the US have skilled tensions of late, clashing over Taiwan and China’s human rights file and its navy exercise within the South China Sea.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is predicted to journey to China within the coming days.
It just isn’t clear if this may have an effect on his journey plans, which the State Department has not formally introduced.
Source: information.sky.com”