Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Why did the US took so long to shoot down the surveillance balloon?

Why did the US took so long to shoot down the surveillance balloon?

Why did the US took so long to shoot down the surveillance balloon?

Why did the US took so long to shoot down the surveillance balloon?

Advertisement
  • The US believes that the week-long delay may actually work in its favor.
  • The order came when the balloon was just off the coast of South Carolina.
  • A single F-22 fighter went up to 58,000 feet and fired an Aim-9X Sidewinder missile.
Advertisement

Washington: US President Joe Biden said he intended to shoot down an alleged Chinese “spy” balloon as soon as he found out about it, but the week-long delay may actually work in his favor.

“I told them to shoot it down,” he told reporters on Saturday, referring to his top generals. “They said to me, ‘Let’s wait till the safest place to do it.’

The order came when the balloon was just off the coast of South Carolina and no longer a risk to anyone below. A single F-22 fighter went up to 58,000 feet and fired an Aim-9X Sidewinder missile, the white contrails of which could be seen against the stark blue sky by people on the ground. The balloon popped, and the equipment it was carrying fell to the ground.

I told them to shoot it down. They said to me, ‘Let’s wait till the safest place to do it. -Joe Biden

Over the course of the week, the balloon had the most impact on the first visit to China by a Secretary of State in five years. Top diplomat Antony Blinken canceled his trip due to “unacceptable and irresponsible” surveillance, according to China’s top foreign policy official.

BIDEN CONGRATULATES US MILITARY

Advertisement

Biden praised the military for successfully bringing the balloon down. He went on to say that the Pentagon had urged that the shot be done over water and that he had approved the ‘balloon”s downing on Wednesday.

The US has already utilized the Chinese spy balloon to strengthen military and intelligence connections with its closest allies, and it has informed partners about the situation. The Pentagon complimented Canadian peers for following the balloon above North American airspace, while South Korea’s foreign minister requested an explanation from China during a session with Blinken on Friday.

Also Read

Pentagon suspected a Chinese spy balloon over the US
Pentagon suspected a Chinese spy balloon over the US

Joe Biden asked Lloyd Austin and senior military leaders to shoot the...

Despite the fact that millions of people were aware of the Chinese balloon floating high above the US, Biden did not notify Beijing before the US aircraft brought it down, according to persons familiar with the event.

China reacts

Advertisement

China was outraged by the decision to fire down the balloon, claiming that the US had violated international rules by attacking what it claimed was a meteorological balloon that had blown off course.

While US officials had advised their Chinese counterparts that downing the balloon was an option, the unwillingness to communicate with China before to the missile strike revealed a new level of animosity between the two countries.

Biden’s decision to wait several days before shooting down the balloon drew a barrage of criticism from Republicans who said his administration was weak on China and should have gotten rid of it immediately, or at the very least before it drifted over Montana, which is home to a large portion of the US’s Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missiles.

The US military and intelligence agencies will now have access to a sophisticated piece of equipment used by their main geopolitical rival. A Pentagon official told reporters on Saturday that the operation to remove the debris with intelligence value is now underway, and that the US believes the balloon had a wide range of intelligence-gathering capabilities.

Also Read

US shoots down Chinese spy balloon over ´unacceptable´ violation
US shoots down Chinese spy balloon over ´unacceptable´ violation

The action occurred Saturday afternoon. President Joe Biden praised fighter pilots for...

Advertisement

Advertisement
Advertisement
Read More News On

Catch all the China News, World News, Breaking News Event and Latest News Updates on The BOL News


Download The BOL News App to get the Daily News Update & Follow us on Google News.


End of Article

Next Story