Earlier this year, authorities shot down a Chinese spy balloon that they spotted over their territory. Today, more is known about the technology they used to gather information about the United States – although unofficially so far. The Wall Street Journal claims it was… American technology.
The United States informs what was on board the downed balloon
This is to be the result of the analysis of several intelligence and defense agencies. On board the balloon was commercially available equipment, which was accompanied by specialized Chinese sensors and other equipment for taking pictures and making recordings. It is also known that the collected audiovisual information was to be sent to China.
The findings of the American services contradict Beijing’s explanations. They show that the balloon was not used to monitor the weather, it was a spy device. The Reuters agency says that despite the unusually long, eight-week flight over Alaska, other US states and Canada, there is no certainty that the collected data was successfully transmitted.
In early February, the United States decided to shoot down the object. Fragments of a Chinese balloon have been recovered off the coast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. General Glen VanHerck, head of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), revealed at the time that the balloon was about 60 meters high, and its cargo section was comparable in size to regional airliners.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the facility was used by China “to observe strategic locations in the continental United States.” “The presence of a Chinese spy balloon in US airspace is a clear violation of US sovereignty and a violation of international law,” said Secretary Antony Blinken at the time.
China explains again: It was not a spy balloon, but a commercial one. “He’s off course”
Blinken recently met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, which proves that relations between the two countries are not frozen. Republican senators, however, are demanding full details from the secretary about what data the Chinese balloon collected and why it went undetected for so long. Beijing continues to downplay the balloon issue.
The latest “version of the testimony” says that the balloon was a commercial tool that ended up over the US as a result of being swerved off course. “President Xi Jinping got very upset when we shot down that balloon because he didn’t know it was there,” said Antony Blinken. He also said that the Chinese president was “very embarrassed” by the whole situation.
Source: Gazeta
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