Friday, February 03, 2023

ALL THIS FUSS AND ITS NOT EVEN A UFO
US hypes spy balloon, brings ‘China threat’ to new level

By Liu XinPublished: Feb 03, 2023 


Recent signals sent from the US on China have been utterly chaotic, which may bring more uncertainty to already strained bilateral relations, Chinese analysts said on Friday. They urged the US to be more sincere in fixing relations with China instead of making provocative actions against it, especially after the picture of a white balloon made headlines in the US and some Western countries on Friday, as Pentagon officials claimed that a Chinese spy balloon hovering over Montana this week had a flight path that took it over "sensitive sites" in the US.

A spokesperson from the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday that the balloon was an airship from China but rejected the spy claim, saying that the civilian airship, used mainly for meteorological research purposes, deviated from its planned course after being affected by westerlies and due to its limited self-steering capability.

The Chinese side regrets the unintended entry of the airship into US airspace due to force majeure, and will continue communicating with the US side and properly handle this unexpected situation caused by force majeure, said the spokesperson.

The balloon - about the size of three buses, is traveling at an altitude "well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground," Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters in a hastily arranged news conference where he addressed the ongoing situation, the Washington Post reported.

Before being clear of the facts, the US military and media accused China of spying, and this incident has brought the US' recent hyping of the "China threat" to a new level, with some Chinese analysts saying the stunt, which was not backed by concrete proof, may bring new tensions to China-US relations, as it is a follow-up to more intensive US moves to contain China in the fields of military, technology, and diplomacy and also on issues of China's core concerns, including on the island of Taiwan.

The string of US' actions against China also came with the news from the US that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China on February 5 and 6. China has not yet confirmed Blinken's visit, despite the spokesperson of China's Foreign Affairs Ministry previously welcoming it.

Following the balloon hype, US media reported Friday that the Biden administration has decided to postpone Blinken's upcoming trip to Beijing.

While the international community expects to see the world's top two economies ease tensions via high-level interactions to boost global development in the post-pandemic era, the US is being urged to be more sincere in making concrete moves to solve problems with China, instead of making more provocations, analysts said.

Maintaining high-level communication is conductive to improving bilateral relations, However, deeply affected by its domestic politics, Washington has sent utterly chaotic signals, with positive commitments made by the top leader as well as continuous actions that further endanger relations, bringing more uncertainties to China-US ties, Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times.

This week, while drumming up the threat from China, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had been engaged into a whirlwind of activities in South Korea and the Philippines, two of China's neighboring countries, to step up military drills and push for wider access of US troops to bases in Southeast Asia.

Aside from adding to its military presence around China, the US also ramped up efforts to strangle China on high-technologies, including a decision to cease approval licenses for American firms to export most items to Chinese technology giant Huawei and coercing the Netherlands and Japan to agree to join the US in limiting exports of advanced chipmaking equipment to China. It has also been unceasingly hyping issues on the island of Taiwan ahead of the one-year anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine military conflict.

To set real guardrails

Analysts said it is neither strange nor rare to see the US playing this old trick of exerting extreme pressure on China before significant and high-level potential interactions in an attempt to gain more bargaining chips. However, China will make no compromise on its core concerns and will take countermeasures against provocations while welcoming any exchanges made in good intention.

On Friday, China released a report that examines the US' willful practice of long-arm jurisdiction in recent years, and the perils it has brought to the international political and economic order and the international rule of law. Some analysts interpreted the report as a response to Washington's suppression of China.

The US is facing a problem on how to balance its strategic goals with domestic practical needs, as its containment of China is more a negative-sum game than a zero-sum one. As it attempts to cripple China, it is shooting its own feet. For example, the semiconductor industry in the US is facing its toughest challenges since the 90s and its internet industry has suffered the coldest winter, Lü Xiang, an expert on US studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times, on Friday.

Economic recovery is not the only field in which the US needs China. Analysts noted that the Biden administration is seeking to hold talks with China on a slew of issues, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict, exchanges between the two militaries, and climate. Communication channels on the latter two fields had been temporarily suspended after the US former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's highly provocative visit to the island of Taiwan.

Some US lawmakers, especially hawkish anti-China ones, have provocatively put out a longer list of issues that should be discussed between China and the US. US media reported that US Senator Bob Menendez wrote to Blinken on Wednesday to urge him to talk about human rights issues and the Taiwan question.

Li said that China also has its own list of issues it needs to talk about with the US, especially on the island of Taiwan. With the harm done by Pelosi's visit to the island still lingering over China-US relations, the Biden administration should credibly honor its commitment and make sure the new House Speaker Kevin McCarthy does not provoke China with a visit to the island, which is a real move that would set a guardrail on bilateral relations.

The US has continued playing the Taiwan card, with the latest stunt pulled by US Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns, who said on Thursday that China's "ambitions" on the island should not be underestimated.

In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at the press conference on Friday that the island is an inalienable part of China and the Taiwan question is China's domestic affair, which is different from the Ukraine issue in nature. She urged some people in the US to stop creating new factors that will bring tension to the cross-Straits situation.

China has made the red line crystal clear to the US, and it is time for the US to show sincerity in fixing ties, said analysts.

Lü said that the US and China should grasp the current window of opportunity to improve relations, as the US will fall into more chaos after it enters its election cycle. More stable China-US relations benefit not only the US and China, but also meet the expectations of the international community.

China's foreign ministry says airship over the US was an accident

A balloon flies in the sky over Billings, Montana, U.S. February 1, 2023, in this picture obtained from social media. Chase Doak/via REUTERS

04 Feb 2023

SHANGHAI: China's foreign ministry said on Saturday (Feb 4) that the flight of a Chinese "airship" over the United States was a "force majeure accident", accusing US politicians and media of taking advantage of the situation to discredit China.

The United States, saying the craft was a suspected spy balloon that had committed a "clear violation" of US sovereignty, postponed a visit to China by Secretary of State Antony Blinken that had been expected to start on Friday.

"China has always strictly abided by international law and respected the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries," the ministry said in a statement.

It said Beijing and Washington had not announced any visit by Blinken and that "the US announcements are their own matter and we respect that".

Related:

Blinken postpones China trip over 'unacceptable' Chinese spy balloon

The ministry said in a separate statement that Wang Yi, director of China's Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, had spoken to Blinken over the phone on Friday evening and discussed how to deal with accidental incidents in a calm and professional manner.

Wang told Blinken that both parties needed to communicate in a timely manner and avoid any misjudgments, the ministry said.

Blinken cancels China trip as spy balloon floats over US, Beijing calls it ‘civilian airship’

The presence of a China-made spy balloon in US airspace forced Secretary of State Antony Blinken to cancel his first trip to Beijing. But China has said the balloon was launched for weather research and it strayed into the US.

Adarsh T R
New Delhi,
UPDATED: Feb 4, 2023 

A balloon flies in the sky over Billings, Montana, US. (Photo: AP)

high-altitude Chinese surveillance balloon was spotted hovering over Montana in the US, home to one of three nuclear missile launch facilities at Malmstrom Air Force Base on Friday, straining US-China relations.

While the US said the spy balloon was launched by China to collect information, Beijing confirmed it was China-made. It later voiced regret that the balloon, launched for weather research, strayed into US airspace.

The spy balloon saga led to the postponement of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's first official trip to Beijing. Although the trip was not formally announced, both Beijing and Washington were talking about his imminent arrival.

“Shoot down the balloon,” former President Donald Trump wrote on his website on Friday morning.

Here are the latest developments.

The White House said the presence of the spy balloon in US airspace was a clear violation of sovereignty and international law. Antony Blinken postponed his trip, saying the incident on the eve of his visit was an "irresponsible act" by China.

"The first step is getting the surveillance asset out of our air space," he said, adding that Washington would maintain open lines of communication with China


The postponing of Blinken's trip, which had been agreed to in November by US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, is a blow to those who saw it as an overdue opportunity to stabilise an increasingly fractious relationship. The last visit by a US secretary of state was in 2017.

Joe Biden was briefed about the floating orb on Friday as Republicans mounted pressure on the administration to shoot down the spy balloon. The US did get fighter jets, including F-22s, ready to shoot down the balloon, but the Pentagon recommended against it as its size would create a debris field large enough to harm people on the ground.

The US has assured its citizens that the spy balloon does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground. It was not clear what the military was doing to prevent it from collecting sensitive information or what would happen with the balloon if it wasn’t shot down.

The mood in China over the balloon was also glum. The government expressed regret that an "airship" used for civilian meteorological and other scientific purposes had strayed.

However, in a stern message, Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee told Antony Blinken that China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international law, Global Times reported.

"We do not accept any groundless speculation and hype," Yi told Blinken.

Currently, the US is tracking the path of the spy balloon, hovering above the central United States. The balloon is demonstrating its capability to maneuver, but the US said it will not give constant updates on its location.

The public has the ability to look up in the sky and see where the balloon is, a Pentagon official told The Washington Post.

The Pentagon's disclosure about the balloon's maneuverability directly challenges China's assertion about it being blown off course.

Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder said the spy balloon would likely be over the country for a few more days. He also said another Chinese balloon was observed over Latin America, without saying where exactly.


--- ENDS ---


Chinese Balloon High Over US Stirs Unease Down Below

The Chinese balloon drifting high above the U.S. and first revealed over Montana has created a buzz down below among residents — and raised a chorus of alarm from elected officials


By Associated Press
Feb. 3, 2023, 

A balloon floats over Columbia, Mo., on Friday, Feb. 3, 2023. A huge, high-altitude Chinese balloon sailed across the U.S. on Friday, drawing severe Pentagon accusations of spying despite China's firm denials. (Anna Griffin/Missourian via AP)ANNA GRIFFIN

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Chinese balloon drifting high above the U.S. and first revealed over Montana has created a buzz down below among residents who initially wondered what it was — and now wonder what its arrival means amid a chorus of alarm raised by elected officials.

The balloon roiled diplomatic tensions as it continued to move over the central U.S. on Friday at 60,000 feet (18,288 meters). Secretary of State Antony Blinken abruptly canceled an upcoming trip to China.

Curiosity about the bobbling sky orb that's the size of three school buses swept the nation and the internet, with search terms like “where is the spy balloon now?” and “spy balloon tracker” surging on Google. There is no such tracker just yet, but a couple St. Louis TV stations offered grainy live feeds of the balloon.

Internet users posted wobbly videos and photos of white splotches in comments sections and speculative feeds. And online storm chasers, more accustomed to tracking raging systems and funnel clouds, offered updates on the balloon’s path through cloudless skies.

It crossed into U.S. airspace over Alaska early this week, according to officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive topic.

In Montana — home to Malmstrom Air Force base and dozens of nuclear missile silos — people doubted Beijing's claim that it was a weather balloon gone off course. And the governor and members of Congress pressed the Biden administration over why the military did not immediately bring it down from the sky.

“I question whether or not we would even found out about this if people hadn't spotted it in Billings,” said Chase Doak, a resident of the southern Montana city who appears to have captured some of the first known video footage and photographs of the balloon.

A white balloon with what appeared to be a solar array hanging beneath it was seen over Billings Wednesday afternoon, around the same time the local airport was temporarily shut down and a day before the Pentagon said it was tracking a Chinese spy balloon over the state.

Initial speculation over its origins ranged from the foreign to the extra-terrestrial.

When Todd Hewett's 10-year-old son saw it over Billings he thought it was a comet. Hewett got some shaky footage, using a cellphone to take video through a telescope, and was skeptical of the Chinese claim it was a civilian balloon.

“Shoot it down,” he said. "If we could somehow pierce the bottom of it to allow some of the gas to escape to allow for a more controlled descent (that) would be nice .. but if we can’t do that ... blow it up.”

Montana has some experience with balloons launched by adversaries: Japan in World War II targeted the western U.S. with incendiary “balloon bombs” that were floated over North America with plans to harm people and start forest fires. More than 30 of the bombs made of rice paper landed in Montana, according to the Montana Historical Society.

In Oregonfive children and a pregnant woman on a church picnic were killed in 1945 when they found one of the bombs and it exploded.

On Friday in Kansas City, Missouri, the National Weather Service said it received reports of a large balloon in the Kansas City metro area and posted two images of white orbs taken from the weather station office in Pleasant Hill, Missouri. The service confirmed it was not a National Weather Service balloon.

A graphic generated by a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration online tool was eagerly shared on Facebook, showing the balloon’s trajectory sweep into the U.S. South. Local National Weather Service offices were asked on Twitter whether the balloon was theirs. No, was their answer.

Tami Hansen, 44, saw the balloon overhead in Columbia, Missouri, and said she was not terribly concerned about the object flying over her city.

“I’ve heard all kinds of thoughts. Is it a spy balloon, is it a weather balloon? Who knows right now? It is what it is," she said. “We really try not to get too political out here,” she said.

Montana U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, who chairs the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said he would hold a hearing to get answers from the Biden administration. He called China's actions “a clear threat."

Rep. Ryan Zinke sent a poll to constituents early Friday saying the balloon was still over the state and asking if should be shot down. When the Pentagon said the balloon had since drifted over the central U.S., Zinke raised the possibility China had more than one balloon over the U.S..

“I don't know if that's the only balloon. We've asked for those answers,” he told The Associated Press. He said the balloon should have been shot down. “The message that it gives to our allies is, we’re not capable of dealing with a balloon," he said.

Republicans in Montana have grown increasingly outspoken in recent years about China posing a threat to U.S. national security.

A bill pending before the state Legislature would ban “foreign adversaries” from owning, leasing or renting critical infrastructure or farmland. The measure's sponsor singled out China as being interested in acquiring U.S. lands and resources to “help them with spying efforts."

The heavy anti-China sentiment marks a shift from a just a few years ago, when Montana U.S. Sen. Steve Daines visited China, hosted the Chinese ambassador on a visit to a Montana ranch and helped secure a deal to export more beef to China.

The beef deal later fell through, and the Republican has transformed into a strong critic of China.

Daines on Friday rejected the Pentagon's contention that it was too dangerous to bring the balloon down over Montana. He told reporters there would have been “no better place” than his sparsely populated home state.

“You've got higher odds of hitting a cow or a prairie dog or an antelope than you would of hitting any kind of a structure or a person,” he said.

_

Associated Press writers Margaret Stafford in Liberty, Missouri; Alina Hartounian in Phoenix; and Lolita Baldor in Washington contributed to this report.

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