Report: US Tracked Spy Balloon From China’s Coast

U.S. officials followed China’s spy ballon from its launch at China’s southern coast nearly one week before it entered U.S. skies, CBS reported. reported.

According to intelligence officials, the balloon flew toward Guam and Hawaii before turning north towards Alaska. It entered U.S. airspace Jan. 28. After crossing over Idaho on January 31, the airship travelled across the country before being shot down by President Joe Biden.

Biden has come under fire from Democrats and Republicans for his slow response. This will likely increase questions about the reason the president allowed the balloon, which was already in place, to cross the country.

Kamala Harris, Vice President In an interview on Tuesday, she said that the spy balloon incident would not affect relations between the countries. However, Secretary of State Antony Blinken cancelled a trip to Beijing and China has since strengthened Its relationship with Iran

China claims the spy balloon was used for meteorological research. However, the U.S. State Department stated that it was actually being used for this purpose. “clearly for intelligence surveillance,” Multiple antennae “likely capable of collecting and geo-locating communications.”

Three more unidentified objects were also shot down by U.S. forces after the military took down the balloon above South Carolina’s coast. They were located over Alaska, northern Canada and Lake Huron. However, the Pentagon has not yet recovered any of these objects. The object that was shot over Canada was an a “small, metallic balloon.”

Lawmakers, Included Top Democrats have criticized the Biden administration for not being transparent about unidentified objects.

“It’s hard to say whether the administration is trigger happy or prudent because Congress hasn’t received a substantive briefing since the first spy balloon was shot down,” Rep. Jim Banks (R., Ind.The House Armed Services Committee member, Jim Banks, spoke to the Washington Free Beacon. “The Biden DOD has said that these three objects threatened our national security, and if they did it’s unacceptable for Congress to be kept in the dark.”

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