Washington: After a rumoured Chinese spy balloon was seen flying across the US in what Washington called a "clear violation" of US sovereignty, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a trip to China that was scheduled to begin on Friday.
A high-altitude surveillance balloon was being monitored over the United States' continental territory, the Pentagon reported on Thursday. According to reports, military officials considered shooting it down over Montana on Wednesday but ultimately advised President Joe Biden against doing so due to the danger posed by falling debris.
Biden was informed about the balloon flight on Tuesday, and according to White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre, the administration "consensus that it was not appropriate to travel to the People's Republic of China at this time."
Also Read: 'We are on the verge of ruin', letter written to PM Shehbaz Sharif
On Friday, China expressed its regret over a "airship" that had erred into US airspace while being used for scientific and other non-military purposes. The US administration was aware of China's statement, according to Jean-Pierre, but the balloon's presence in our airspace clearly violates both domestic and international law. This is unacceptable to have happened.
Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, spokesman for the Pentagon, reported on Friday that the balloon had altered its course and was now floating eastward at a height of about 60,000 feet (18,300 metres) above the heart of the United States and displaying its ability to manoeuvre. He predicted that it would continue to be over the nation for a few more days.
Commercial weather forecaster AccuWeather predicted that the balloon might depart the United States and enter the Atlantic on Saturday night. It would be beneficial to recover the balloon "one way or another," Republican senator Mike Rounds told Fox News, to determine "if it was designed to actually collect data or if it was designed to test our response capabilities."
Also Read: A whistleblower fired for criticising the withdrawal from Afghanistan sues the UK government
China's claim that the balloon was blown off course is directly refuted by the Pentagon's disclosure about the balloon's manoeuvrability. Blinken claimed to have informed Wang Yi, head of China's Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, that the incident on the eve of his trip was a "irresponsible act" by China, but Washington remained silent, according to a news conference with South Korea's visiting foreign minister on Friday.
Blinken stated that he would not specify a timeframe for his potential trip to China and that the current incident was the main priority. He said, "The first step is getting the surveillance asset out of our air space, and we'll keep the lines of communication open with China."
The balloon should never have been allowed to enter US airspace, according to Michael McCaul, the Republican chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, and it could have been shot down over water. He issued a statement saying, "I am calling on the Biden administration to swiftly take steps to remove the Chinese spy balloon from US airspace.
An official from the White House claimed that on Thursday afternoon, the administration briefed the staff of the so-called Gang of 8, which consists of Republican and Democratic leaders from the Senate and House.
Such balloon surveillance activity, according to the official, "has been observed over the past several years, including in the prior administration - we have kept Congress briefed on this issue." Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping had agreed to postpone Blinken's trip in November, which is a setback for those who saw it as a long overdue chance to mend a steadily deteriorating relationship. A US secretary of state last visited in 2017.
China wants a stable US-China relationship so that it can concentrate on its economy, which has been hurt by the now-repealed zero-COVID policy and neglected by foreign investors who are concerned about what they perceive to be a return of state intervention in the market. Chinese President Xi has met with world leaders recently in an effort to repair relations and resolve differences.
Under former President Barack Obama, top US diplomat for Asia Daniel Russel stated that he did not see a strategic justification for cancelling the trip and emphasised the significance of continuing high-level engagement with China. The Biden team might be tempted to continue where they left off, despite the fact that the US has much more important matters to discuss with the Chinese than a surveillance balloon.
Also Read: MP asks UK to ban Iran guards to stop their "nefarious activities"
Relations between China and the US have deteriorated significantly in recent years, particularly after Nancy Pelosi, the then-US House Speaker, visited Taiwan in August. This visit sparked dramatic Chinese military exercises close to the self-governing island.
The balloon was at a height well above commercial air traffic, according to Ryder of the Pentagon, and did not pose a military or physical threat to people on the ground. It was determined to have "limited additive value from an intelligence collection perspective," according to a US official.
On Thursday, a different official said, without providing further details, that the balloon's flight path would pass over several sensitive locations. 150 intercontinental ballistic missile silos are located at the Montanan Malmstrom Air Force Base.
Ryder on Friday declined to specify the location of the balloon, but the National Weather Service in Kansas City tweeted that it had received numerous reports of a large balloon across northwest Missouri as he was speaking. China has frequently voiced complaints about American surveillance, including the stationing of ships or aircraft close to Chinese military drills.