The balloon was shot down above the United States on Saturday, and the People’s Republic of China is asking for the return of its surveillance aircraft.
Tuesday, Mao Ning, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, answered inquiries regarding the incident, which dominated news cycles and attracted the attention of American legislators.
Mao declined when asked for more details about the spy balloon’s mission and rumors of similar aircraft flying across North and South American airspace.
“The Chinese side has repeatedly provided information regarding the unmanned airship. Right now, I don’t have anything to offer,” she said.
According to the Pentagon, “rapid action was taken to prevent the capture of critical material” from the surveillance platform. But according to geopolitical specialists, there is no evidence that those measures were successful because the surveillance data was almost probably conveyed to China by the balloon as it passed over many military locations.
Mao responded on Tuesday, “The airship does not belong to the U.S.,” when asked if China has demanded the return of the wreckage from the destroyed aircraft. It is China’s property.
Mao blasted the U.S. government for not acting in a “cool and professional manner” and reaffirmed the Chinese Communist Party’s position that the balloon was civilian during her press conference on Tuesday.
The Chinese airship is crewless and of a civilian nature. Its unintentional arrival into U.S. airspace is wholly unexpected and brought on by forces beyond its control. It posed no threat to any individual or the United States national security. The U.S. chose to act in a way that is an overreaction rather than handling such occurrences in a professional, calm manner without using force.
The story was questioned by former defense secretary Mark Esper and former secretary of state Mike Pompeo on Saturday when the Pentagon claimed three identical spy balloons from China passed over the United States under the Trump administration.
According to a senior administration official, the Biden administration first learned about the Chinese spy balloons flying over American land during the Trump administration.
