After a surveillance balloon hovers over Montana, the US Secretary of State postpones her visit to China.
The planned visit by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China has been postponed because a Chinese balloon that was flying at a high altitude entered US airspace. Claiming it was a weather balloon blown off course, China has apologized. But this theory was refuted by US officials, and the Pentagon maintained that it was, in fact, a surveillance aircraft.
By Friday noon, the balloon had veered off track and was above the middle of China. Friday night was supposed to be the start of Blinken’s voyage, but it has been pushed back until more favorable weather arrives.
A possible Chinese surveillance balloon over US airspace is currently being tracked by the Pentagon, which raised concerns. Its progress was monitored by the Pentagon all the way across Canada to Montana, which is home to a portion of the nation’s nuclear missile force.
It was referred to as a surveillance balloon by US defense officials. After being informed and asked for military alternatives, Joe Biden was informed that shooting it down may endanger people on the ground from falling debris.
In response to a query over the balloon on Friday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated: “The airship is from China.” This is a non-profit research aircraft that is mostly utilized for meteorological studies. Due to the influence of the Westerlies and its insufficient capacity to direct itself, the airship strayed significantly from its intended path.
US astronaut Blinken’s trip to Taiwan has been postponed by the Pentagon due to worries over Taiwan’s future and the military posture in the Indo-Pacific. Ground people are not in danger from the balloon, which is presently flying above commercial air traffic, either militarily or physically.
To safeguard sensitive data, the US government acted right away. Beijing is against a US-Philippines agreement that gives the US more access to Philippine military sites for cooperative training, storage, and facility construction, but not for a long-term stay.
