UFO or Chinese spy? US officials baffled by unidentified ‘balloon’, says, ‘it doesn't...’
livemint.comAssociated Press, citing NORAD spokesperson John Cornelio, NORAD sent fighter pilots to probe and noted that it "did not pose any threat to the national security". However, there has been an increase in attention drawn to sightings of balloons traversing the United States following the military's interception and destruction of a Chinese surveillance balloon that traversed a significant portion of the nation last year.
Also Read: Chinese spy balloon used American internet provider: US Moreover, authorities have clarified that the balloon intercepted on Friday was not dispatched by a foreign adversary and does not present a danger to aviation or national security. However, NORAD remained silent on the origin or purpose of the balloon observed flying over Utah and Colorado.
Earlier this year, American authorities destroyed a sizable, white surveillance balloon from China off the South Carolina coast. The Pentagon asserted that this balloon was a component of an extensive surveillance initiative that China had been undertaking for "several years." China responded that it reserved the right to “take further actions" and criticized the US for “an obvious overreaction and a serious violation of international practice." Moreover, the presence of the Chinese surveillance balloon became a significant diplomatic issue between the United States and China, leading Secretary of State Antony Blinken to cancel a planned visit to Beijing in February 2023.
Blinken later undertook the trip in June in an attempt to alleviate escalating tensions, which encompassed various concerns such as the balloon incident and China's increasingly assertive behaviour in the South China Sea. Also Read: Cold War II: America’s emulation of Chinese policy
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