According to the Pentagon, a second Chinese spy balloon flew over Latin America at the time when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a trip to China following the entry of a high-altitude Chinese balloon into US territory, reported first by The Guardian.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks following a Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the State Department in Washington, DC, on February 3, 2023. - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday scrapped a rare Beijing trip aimed at easing escalating tensions between the two global powers, after the Pentagon said that China flew a spy balloon over the United States.
Second Sighting
A day after the first craft was observed over US skies, Pentagon spokesperson Pat Ryder said they are getting reports of a second balloon sighting in Latin America.
Although the Pentagon did not give a precise location for the balloon, a US official told CNN that it did not appear to be currently traveling in the direction of the country.
Blinken claimed that during a conversation with Wang Yi, China's senior diplomat, in South Korea on Friday, he made it clear that this surveillance balloon in US airspace constitutes a violation of US sovereignty and international law.
However, Blinken said he had informed Wang of Washington's commitment to diplomatic talks with China and that he would eventually travel to Beijing when conditions allow.
He added that the US is currently getting the surveillance asset out of the country's airspace.
A state department representative emphasized that communication between the two nations was still open and that the trip had only been postponed and not canceled, as per The Guardian's report.
Blinken's trip to Beijing would have signaled a warming of relations between the two nations ever since the administration of former President Donald Trump. He would have been the first US secretary of state to pay a visit to the country since October 2018.
China's Response
Chinese government representatives said that the flying object was only in US airspace because strong winds blew it off course.
The aircraft garnered significant media attention when numerous speculations suggested that China was using it as a spy balloon against the US.
China claimed that the alleged spy plane was only a civilian airship. It was made clear by the Chinese government that it was primarily intended for meteorological study and not for espionage.
Beijing explained that the airship has limited steering capabilities. This is how the high winds were able to cause it to deviate from the intended course.
The intelligence agency said the balloon had been monitored since it passed over the northern United States.
According to defense officials, the balloon's flight route may fly over sensitive military areas.
However, the Chinese foreign ministry's spokesperson Mao Ning clarified that China has no plans to trample on another nation's airspace or sovereignty.
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