The US military has been busy for the past few days with unknown flying object sightings and subsequently taking them down.
On Monday, Feb. 13, the White House defended these takedown operations. It acknowledged that there was no evidence that the objects were designed for surveillance in the same way as the suspected Chinese spy balloon that crossed the US airspace earlier this February, as per AP's report.
(Photo : SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
US National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on September 16, 2022.
Threat to Civilian Commercial Air Traffic
The White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said that the three unknown objects were shot down because they threatened civilian commercial air traffic.
Officials admit that they have no proof to indicate that these objects were equipped for spying, but they have not ruled out this possibility as well, according to Kirby.
Kirby adds that these decisions were based "purely and simply" on the best interests of the American people.
The successive takedown operations started when a suspected Chinese spy balloon was spotted off the coast of Carolina after flying over military locations. It was shot down by the US military on Feb. 4 near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, with the help of an F-22 fighter jet.
US defense officials reported that the balloon was first spotted over the US air defense zone north of the Aleutian Islands on Jan. 28. It then traveled over land across Alaska before breaching Canadian airspace in the Northwest Territories.
China admitted that the balloon belonged to them but claimed it was merely blown off course. After the takedown, it responded by saying it reserved its right to take action and alleged the US of committing a "violation of international practice."
On Sunday, Feb. 12, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and Canada shot down another unknown object flying over the Canadian border. It was ordered by both Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Joe Biden.
An unidentified cylindrical object was recently taken down in Alaskan airspace, and it is currently on its way to recovery.
Investigations are underway to discover who or what was responsible for these flights and uncover more information about the recent cases.
Recent cooperative operations between NORAD and Canada sent out F-22s for three days straight to protect the country against unidentified threats.
US Blacklists Chinese Entities
Meanwhile, the Chinese balloon takedown prompted the US to blacklist six Chinese entities connecting with Beijing's aerospace programs on Friday, Feb. 10.
The Biden administration said it would consider taking more measures to prevent Chinese monitoring activities, and this time, it was followed by another set of economic restrictions. It is worth noting that Biden has also restricted the export of US-made chips to China, which are crucial for the production of various technologies.
The entities included in the blacklist are Guangzhou Tian-Hai-Xiang Aviation Technology Co., Shanxi Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group Co., Beijing Nanjiang Aerospace Technology Co., Dongguan Lingkong Remote Sensing Technology Co., Eagles Men Aviation Science and Technology Group Co., and China Electronics Technology Group Corporation 48th Research Institute.
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