The "balloon," which was noticed over the territory of the United States came from China, it is a civilian airship used for scientific research, which deviated from its course due to wind, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd February, 2023) The "balloon," which was noticed over the territory of the United States came from China, it is a civilian airship used for scientific research, which deviated from its course due to wind, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday.
Later on Thursday, the US Defense Department detected a high altitude surveillance balloon, specifying that the object was traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and did not pose any threat. Pentagon Press Secretary Patrick Ryder said that the US had "very high confidence" that this was a Chinese spy balloon.
"The airship is from China. It is a civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological, purposes. Affected by the Westerlies and with limited self-steering capability, the airship deviated far from its planned course. The Chinese side regrets the unintended entry of the airship into US airspace due to force majeure," the ministry said in a statement.
Beijing will continue to work with the US side to handle the situation.
