More than 40 countries targeted by China’s balloon spy Nord Stream explosion: Moscow calls Biden a “terrorist”

China has attacked more than 40 countries on five continents with a fleet of spy balloons, according to the US government. That said a senior official of the US State Department in Washington on Thursday. The US government is contacting countries directly to update them on the scope of China’s surveillance program. “We know that China used these balloons for surveillance,” he said. The equipment in the balloon shot down off the US coast was “clearly used for intelligence monitoring”. China, in turn, accused the US government of waging an “information war” over the persistent allegations of espionage.

The appearance of a large Chinese observation balloon over US territory has further strained already strained relations between the two countries. The US military shot down the balloon over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday. The US government accuses China of spying on military installations. Beijing, on the other hand, spoke of a civilian research balloon, primarily for meteorological purposes. This was, of course, launching an “overreaction”.

Given the dispute, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceled a trip to Beijing at short notice. Blinken had already said on Wednesday that the crashed Chinese balloon was part of an extensive surveillance program. “The United States was not the only target of this broad program that violated the sovereignty of countries on five continents.”

Now the US State Department has added numerous details to invalidate Beijing’s representation – thereby increasing public pressure on China. The downed Chinese balloon had “multiple antennas” and was likely capable of “gathering and locating communications”. The US is said to have taken high-resolution images using reconnaissance aircraft to determine the capabilities of the balloon. The equipment does not match that of weather balloons.

“We know that these balloons are all part of a fleet of PRC balloons developed for surveillance purposes,” said a US State Department official. These types of activities are often carried out on behalf of the Chinese military. “We are sure that the balloon manufacturer has a direct relationship with the Chinese military,” he said.

Even before these details were revealed — and in response to Blinken’s comments — Beijing had complained bitterly about ongoing allegations of espionage from Washington. “I think this is part of the information war the US is waging against China,” Beijing foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Thursday. The international community knows exactly who really is “number one among the espionage and surveillance empires”. At the same time, she reiterated the statement that it was a civilian airship that accidentally entered American space due to force majeure. “While we have repeatedly made this clear, the US used force to shoot it down, which is irresponsible,” she said.

The US government emphasizes that it is interested in open communication channels with Beijing and that Blinken’s visit to Beijing should be rescheduled as soon as circumstances allow. For the time being, things are communicative but not exactly between the two countries. After the balloon launched, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin requested a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wei Fenghe, the Pentagon said. However, the Chinese side rejected this.

US President Joe Biden tried to soften the tone in an interview with broadcaster PBS on Wednesday evening (local time). When asked if US-China relations have taken a major hit from the downturn, Biden replied with a resounding “no”. He can say this with certainty because the two countries trade with each other. Biden reiterated that the US competes with China, but does not seek conflict. (sda/dpa)