U.S. Shoots Down Suspected Chinese Spy Balloon Off South Carolina Coast
The US military shot down a Chinese high-altitude balloon that was spying on US military sites. The balloon was shot down by a fighter jet with an AIM-9X Sidewinder missile over US territorial waters, about 6 nautical miles off the US coast. China expressed its "strong dissatisfaction and protest against the US's use of force to attack civilian unmanned aircraft." The US military is now trying to recover the debris that is spread over seven miles. The Chinese authorities have denied it was a spying aircraft, and instead said it was a weather ship that was blown astray. The incident has escalated the diplomatic tensions between China and the US. The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had called off his planned trip to China over the incident. Taiwan, which considers itself as an independent state, issued a statement condemning China's actions. A second Chinese spy balloon was also reported over Latin America.
#news #china_balloons
