The United States on Saturday downed a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the Carolina coast on orders from President Joe Biden.
This photo provided by Jason Sellers shows U.S. Air Force fighter aircraft shooting down a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the Carolina coast on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. President Joe Biden said on Saturday that he ordered U.S. officials to shoot down the suspected Chinese spy balloon earlier this week and that national security leaders decided the best time for the operation was when it got over water.
Officials said the debris landed in 47 feet of water, shallowed than they had expected. It was not immediately clear how long the recovery would take. The Navy is taking the lead, supported by the Coast Guard. Television footage showed a small explosion, followed by the giant deflated balloon descending like a ribbon toward the water. U.S. military jets were seen flying in the vicinity and ships were deployed in the water to mount the recovery operation.
“In actuality, the U.S. and China have never announced any visit, the U.S. making any such announcement is their own business, and we respect that,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Saturday morning. Blinken, who had been due to depart Washington for Beijing late Friday, said he had told senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in a phone call that sending the balloon over the U.S. was “an irresponsible act and that decision to take this action on the eve of my visit is detrimental to the substantive discussions that we were prepared to have.”
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