WASHINGTON - Under near-24/7 coverage that veered towards parody last week, the United States was transfixed by news about a Chinese “spy” balloon drifting over and across the country until – as seen on live television – it was brought down off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday by a short-range Sidewinder missile fired from a top-of-the-line F-22 fighter jet. Read more at straitstimes.com.
WASHINGTON - Under near-24/7 coverage that veered towards parody last week, the United States was transfixed by news about a Chinese “spy” balloon drifting over and across the country until – as seen on live television – it was brought down off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday by a short-range Sidewinder missile fired from a top-of-the-line F-22 fighter jet.
But it was hyped as dangerous anyway – not by the Biden administration, but by Congress, with the message amplified by cable news. Foreign policy and national security analysts have pointed out that big powers throughout history have spied on one another. In 1960, an American U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union. The Pentagon has said three Chinese balloons overflew the US during the 2017-2021 Donald Trump administration, drawing no attention.
Speculation remains rife over the nature of the balloon – and the intention behind its flight. China says it was a weather and climate balloon that blew off course; the US says it was a surveillance balloon. Either explanation, in turn, triggers additional questions, some of which may never be answered.
“The hysterical overreaction was in part political theatre because whatever President Joe Biden does, they are looking for some way to beat him up for it; and in part, it was a Rorschach test for Americans’ views - of the antipathy towards China.” “There will be a period of rhetorical excess,” Dr Altschuler told The Straits Times. “That’s what happens with these kinds of very public, visible episodes. But that’s what it is, an episode.”
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
China says US shooting down balloon 'damaged' relationsBEIJING: A US decision to shoot down a Chinese balloon that Beijing claimed had veered off course has 'seriously impacted and damaged' relations between the two countries, China's foreign ministry
Read more »
Australia trade minister to travel to Beijing to meet counterpartThe two trade ministers held a virtual meeting on Monday, the first since 2019. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Read more »
Should you replace white rice with konjac rice if you're trying to lose weight?South Korean actress Song Hye-kyo purportedly ate nothing but konjac rice for two months to prepare for her role in The Glory.
Read more »
China's luxury market shrank 10% in 2022 - BainBEIJING : China's luxury market contracted 10 per cent in 2022 on the year, snapping a five-year streak of high growth, as Beijing's zero-COVID policy and a slowing economy hit spending, Bain & Company said in a report on Tuesday.The luxury market grew 42 per cent annually between 2019 and 2021 but its fo
Read more »
Inspired by dream of flying, Cambodian man builds 'airplane house'SIEM REAP, Cambodia : A Cambodian man, inspired by a lifelong dream of flying, has built a home that is modelled on a plane, complete with a fuselage-like structure standing 6 metres (19.69 ft) above the ground housing his two bedrooms and bathrooms.The concrete construction, which has mock engines, wings
Read more »
After 30 years of saving, Cambodian man lands dream with ‘airplane house’The construction worker's dream home has two bathrooms and two bedrooms. Read more at straitstimes.com.
Read more »