:strip_icc():format(jpeg)/kly-media-production/medias/4314087/original/090951900_1675581184-20230205-Balon-Mata-Mata-China-AP-5.jpg "US and Canada shoot down unidentified flying object")
Remains of a Chinese spy balloon crashed over the Atlantic Ocean, South Carolina, U.S., February 4, 2023. U.S. President Joe Biden has been under pressure to shoot down the balloon since it first appeared in space United States Airline. (Chad Fish via AP)
Providing further details on the mission to shoot down the object, the US Department of Defense confirmed that two F-22 jets took off from a military base in Anchorage, Alaska, and the object was shot down. with an AIM 9X missile.
Pentagon press secretary Brigadier General Pat Ryder added that the FBI would “work closely” with Canadian police.
We don’t know what the object is. But its appearance in North America comes just a week after a suspected Chinese spy balloon was also destroyed by the United States.
Then on Friday, another unspecified object was found and shot down over Alaska on the orders of US President Biden.
In a brief statement, the military said U.S. troops, including those from the Alaska National Guard, were still conducting search and recovery activities on the pack ice for Friday’s object.
He said he had no further details on the object’s capabilities, purpose or origin, but confirmed that the FBI was assisting in the recovery near the town of Deadhorse, Alaska.
Last weekend, defense officials told US media that debris from the Chinese balloon landed in 47ft (14m) of water – shallower than expected – near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
China has denied the balloon – which first entered US airspace on January 28 – was used for espionage, saying it was a lost weather device.
However, the United States said the balloon was part of a fleet of reconnaissance balloons that flew to five continents.
The balloon incident has strained US-China relations, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceling a planned trip to Beijing.
On Friday, Chinese officials accused the United States of “political hype and manipulation”.
In an interview on Thursday, President Joe Biden defended his handling of the Chinese ball, saying it was not a “gross offense”.
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