Beijing apologises as Chinese ‘spy’ balloon enters US airspace

Washington, February 3

China’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday that a balloon the US suspects of conducting surveillance was a civilian “airship” used for research, mainly meteorological purposes.

The statement said the airship has limited steering capability and “deviated far from its planned course” because of winds.

Abiding by international laws

China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international laws, and China has no intention of violating the territory and airspace of any sovereign country. Mao Ning, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson

It said China regrets the unintended entry of the airship into US airspace.

A senior American defence official told Pentagon reporters that the US has “very high confidence” that the object spotted over US airspace in recent days was a Chinese high-altitude balloon and that it was flying over sensitive sites to collect information. One of the places the balloon was spotted was Montana, which is home to one of the nation’s three nuclear missile silo fields at Malmstrom Air Force Base. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information.

The defence official said the US has assessed that the balloon has “limited” value in terms of providing intelligence that couldn’t be obtained by other technologies, such as spy satellites.

The Pentagon decided not to shoot down the balloon, which was potentially flying over sensitive sites, because of concerns of hurting people on the ground.

The news came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was expected to make his first trip to Beijing this weekend. The visit has not been formally announced, and it was not immediately clear if the balloon’s discovery would affect his travel plans.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said she had no information on the trip. But she said China has “no intention of violating the territory and airspace of any sovereign country” and urged calm while the facts are established.

Mao said China was working to understand the situation in the hopes “that both sides can handle this together calmly and carefully”. “China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international laws, and China has no intention of violating the territory and airspace of any sovereign country,” she said.

Biden was briefed and asked the military to present options, according to a senior administration official, who was also not authorised to publicly discuss sensitive information. — AP

Blinken postpones China visit

• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has postponed a visit to China that had been expected to start on Friday
• Secretary Blinken did not want the balloon incident to dominate his meetings in China, said a US official

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