China Blasts US Balloon Accusations As "Information Warfare" - Still Insists It Was For Weather
The Chinese government has rejected fresh US accusations over the recently downed alleged spy balloon off America's east coast, blasting Washington's "information warfare" while continuing to insist it wasn't a surveillance vehicle, but instead a weather balloon for collecting research which blew off course.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning further on Thursday described that China did not intend to violate any country’s sovereignty or airspace. She dismissed the US claims as "irresponsible" and asserted it "may be part of the U.S. side’s information warfare against China."
The ministry also took a swipe at President Biden's Tuesday night State of the Union comments directed at China, wherein the US leader said Chinese President Xi Jinping faces "enormous problems" due to the balloon incident.
Mao Ning separately in a PBS Newshour interview described the latest US assertions as "highly irresponsible and violate basic diplomatic protocols," saying specifically of Biden's anti-China rhetoric: "We are firmly opposed to that and condemn that."
Biden had laid out bluntly that the US and allies must focus on winning the "competition" with Beijing, which should "unite all of us."
"Before I came to office, the story was about how the People’s Republic of China was increasing its power and America was falling in the world. Not anymore,” the president said. Biden then asserted he makes "no apologies" for the US investing in "industries that will define the future, and that China’s government is intent on dominating."
On Thursday the US State Department issued an update of its findings related to the capabilities of the shot-down Chinese balloon, describing that it was equipped with antennas and other gear "likely" used to sweep up communications.
According to the officials cited in The Wall Street Journal:
The Chinese balloon that crossed the U.S. was outfitted with antennas likely capable of collecting communications, a senior State Department official said Thursday, adding that the Biden administration is preparing to take action against China’s surveillance program.
Providing details the U.S. has gathered since tracking and shooting down the balloon, the official said the balloon was also equipped with large solar panels capable of powering an array of intelligence-collection sensors. The manufacturer of the balloon has a direct relationship with the Chinese military, the official added.
The Chinese spy balloon that the U.S. shot down over the Atlantic Ocean last weekend carried high-tech equipment capable of collecting communications signals and other sensitive information, the U.S. government said Thursday. https://t.co/w1MKgFHyDQ
— CBS News (@CBSNews) February 9, 2023
However, Beijing will likely zero in on all of these qualifications, given there's yet to be smoking gun evidence presented for public view. The State Dept. is still using words such as "likely" and merely that the balloon merely "capable" of surveillance. This stops short of the US asserting definitively that it is a proven spy balloon based on the recovered debris.
China has instead called it a "civilian climate research vehicle" and has this week asked for the debris to be returned.
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