CHINESE BALLOON SHOT DOWN IN US AIRSPACE, OFFICIAL SAYS (VIDEO)

Sat 04 February 2023:

A massive Chinese surveillance balloon that was discovered above Montana earlier this week was shot down, according to a senior U.S. official.

The Pentagon has confirmed the balloon was being used for surveillance, disputing China’s claim that it was a civilian aircraft used for meteorological purposes. Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said the balloon didn’t pose a physical or military threat, and once it was detected, the U.S. took steps to protect against foreign intelligence collection of sensitive information.

“This afternoon, at the direction of President Biden, US fighter aircraft assigned to US Northern Command successfully brought down the high altitude surveillance balloon launched by and belonging to the People’s Republic of China over the water off the coast of South Carolina in US airspace,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement.

“On Wednesday, President Biden gave his authorization to take down the surveillance balloon as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to American lives under the balloon’s path,” Austin said.

US President Joe Biden briefly spoke to reporters after the balloon was “successfully” shot down by the U.S. military.

“I ordered the Pentagon to shoot it down on Wednesday as soon as possible. They decided — without doing damage to anyone on the ground – they decided that the best time to do that was when it got over water outside within a 12 mile limit.”

“They successfully took it down and I want to compliment our aviators who did it, and we’ll have more to report on this a little later,” he said.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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