(Washington) The Biden administration is considering a plan to shoot down a large Chinese balloon suspected of spying on the US military when it flies over the Atlantic Ocean, where the remains could potentially be recovered, according to four US officials.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the operation, said it was unclear whether a decision had yet been made by President Joe Biden. In a brief remark on Saturday in response to a reporter’s question, Mr Biden said: “We will deal with it. »
The balloon was spotted Saturday morning over North Carolina as it neared the Atlantic coast.
In preparation for the operation, the Federal Aviation Administration temporarily closed airspace over the Carolina coastline, including airports in Charleston and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina. North. The FAA rerouted air traffic from the region.
PHOTO ELIZABETH FRANZ, REUTERS
Joe Biden answered questions from reporters upon his arrival at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in Syracuse, New York.
Mr Biden had initially wanted to shoot the ball over the ground when he was first told about it on Tuesday. Pentagon officials advised him against it, however, warning that the risks to those below outweighed the potential intelligence gains about China.
China has played down the cancellation of a visit by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken after the discovery of the balloon, believed to be monitoring US military sites, troubled diplomatic relations between the two countries, saying neither side had officially announced such a plan.
“In reality, the United States and China have never announced a visit, if the United States makes such an announcement, it concerns them, and we respect that,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Saturday morning.
Mr Blinken was due to travel to Beijing on Sunday to reduce US-China tensions. The trip was very publicized, after the meeting of the leaders of the countries last November in Indonesia. But the United States abruptly called off the event after the balloon was found, despite assurances from China that it was simply a weather research device that veered off course.
Experts have judged this explanation to be technically possible.
The Pentagon rejected China’s claim that the balloon is not used for surveillance and has only limited navigation capability.
The Pentagon also reported a second balloon flying over Latin America. “We now believe this is another Chinese surveillance balloon,” Brigadier General Pat Ryder, the Pentagon’s press secretary, said in a statement.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a question about the second balloon.
On Saturday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry again stressed that the path of the balloon was beyond its control and urged the United States not to “defame” it.