A Reuters witness and US officials said the United States shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon as it floated off the country’s southeast coast on Saturday.
President Joe Biden approved a military plan to shoot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon, US officials said, as the government ordered a halt to flights around the South Carolina coast as it deemed an undisclosed “national security effort”. ” Was said.
The Pentagon did not immediately comment. Washington has called the balloon a “clear violation” of US sovereignty.
Read also: Why can’t America shoot down China’s spy balloon? Know everything about the mysterious object
Earlier Saturday, Biden said the United States was “going to take care” of the suspected Chinese spy balloon, but did not elaborate. Biden gave a thumbs up to reporters when asked if the balloon would be shot down.
A Reuters photographer said a suspected Chinese spy balloon was shot down off the southeastern US coast. The photographer said, a jet came from a jet, hit the balloon but there was no explosion.
After that it started falling apart, the photographer said.
Officials said military leaders recommended shooting down the balloon earlier this week while it was over Montana because of the risk of falling debris.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) halted departures and arrivals at three airports, including Myrtle Beach International Airport on the South Carolina coast, on Saturday due to a “national security effort”.
The FAA issued a temporary flight restriction to clear airspace around the South Carolina coast. According to a document posted by the FAA, the notice blocked flights over more than 100 square miles (260 square kilometers) — mostly over the Atlantic Ocean. The notice warned that the military could use lethal force if the airmen violated the restrictions and did not obey orders to leave.
A Reuters photographer in the Myrtle Beach area could see suspected spy balloons overhead, with two US military jets flying alongside.
China expressed regret that the “airship” used for civilian meteorological and other scientific purposes had strayed into US airspace.
China’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that the flight of an “airship” over the United States was a blatant accident, and accused American politicians and the media of exploiting the situation to discredit Beijing.
The suspected Chinese spy balloon prompted US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone a trip to China this week that was expected to begin on Friday.
The postponement of the trip to Blinken, which Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed upon in November, is a blow to those who saw it as an overdue opportunity to stabilize the fast-growing relationship between the two countries. seen as
China is eager for a stable US relationship so it can focus on its economy, now battered by the abandoned zero-Covid policy and neglected by foreign investors, which they see as a return to state intervention in the market. lets see.
The Pentagon said on Friday that another Chinese balloon had been spotted over Latin America, without specifying exactly where.
The text of this story is published from a wire agency feed without any modification.
catch all business News, market news, today’s fresh news events and Breaking News Update on Live Mint. download mint news app To get daily market updates.