Joe Biden defends Chinese balloon handling, vows to ‘remain in communication’ with Xi Jinping

US president stresses responsible management of ‘competition’ with China to avoid ‘conflict’ in most detailed remarks yet on saga
Addressing criticism over timing of balloon’s downing, Biden points to ensuring safety of commercial flights and people on ground

US-China relations

Mark Magnierin New York

Published: 4:10am, 17 Feb 2023

Why you can trust SCMP

US President Joe Biden on Thursday detailed his administration’s decision to shoot down a Chinese balloon over American territory, stating he would do whatever was necessary to protect the nation’s sovereignty and that he would “remain in communication” with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

In his first address devoted exclusively to the balloon saga, Biden said he expected to speak with the Chinese leader again, citing the importance of keeping US-China channels open to avoid veering “into conflict”. He did not specify when the two presidents planned to speak next.

Biden said he waited to shoot down the balloon on February 4 – a week after it was detected in American airspace – to avoid jeopardising commercial flights or people on the ground. He said its flight path ensured that it did not threaten national security.

“We seek competition, not conflict with China,” he told reporters, echoing a sentiment conveyed last week in his State of the Union speech. “We’re not looking for a new Cold War, but I make no apologies.

“We will compete and will responsibly manage that competition so that doesn’t veer into conflict. This episode underscores the importance of maintaining open lines of communication between our diplomats and our military professionals.”

The US has said the Chinese balloon, reportedly the size of a regional aircraft, included communications equipment and was used for espionage, adding that it was apparently supposed to fly over Guam and Hawaii but blew off course.

China, for its part, has characterised the unmanned airship as a civilian device meant for meteorological observations. It accused the US of overreacting after it downed the balloon in the Atlantic Ocean with a missile fired from an F-22 fighter jet.

The incident has further strained tense relations between the two powers.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a planned trip to Beijing as the device flew across the US at an altitude of about 60,000 feet over states housing nuclear missiles. And the Pentagon said Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin’s bid to speak with Chinese Minister of National Defence Wei Fenghe last week was rebuffed.

Sovereign airspace, and beyond: downed balloon raises legal questions

Biden had faced growing pressure to explain his administration’s policy on tracking, monitoring and potentially downing the Chinese vessel, amid Republicans’ criticism that his decision to wait until February 4 to act had compromised national security.

Since then, the US government has adjusted its monitoring systems to make them more attuned to potential incursions and shot down three other airborne objects: one Friday off the coast of Alaska, another on Saturday over Canada, and a third on Sunday over Lake Huron.

As friction has intensified, Beijing has countered that US balloons have flown over its airspace without permission more than 10 times since last May. It said it would act against US entities that violate its sovereignty, but did not elaborate. The White House has disputed China’s claim.

Biden on Thursday went out of his way to suggest that any delay in shooting down the Chinese balloon had been carefully considered with safety and national security in mind. He said his decision had allowed the US to “analyse its capabilities and we learned more about how it operates”.

A US fighter jet flies past the remnants of a large balloon after it was shot down just off the coast of South Carolina’s Myrtle Beach on February 4. Photo: AP

The three other balloons appeared to present no danger, he added, and were likely corporate, recreational or research devices – each shot down out of an abundance of caution.

“We don’t yet know exactly what these three objects were,” he said. “But nothing, nothing right now, suggests they were related to China’s spy balloon programme or that they were surveillance vehicles from any other country.”

Biden said he has directed his administration to develop guidelines allowing the government to better distinguish between airborne objects that present risks to Americans and those that are benign.

These include a more timely and comprehensive database of objects floating over American territory, improved detection abilities, tighter US rules on launching unmanned aerial objects and a bid to develop multilateral norms governing this largely unregulated area.

US must strengthen alliances amid closer China-Russia ties, senators hear

Earlier in the week, the White House announced a new inter-agency group to better coordinate US policy and “understand and mitigate” airborne objects.

Biden said on Thursday the number of “objects in the sky” had not increased but rather that more were being detected after surveillance was adjusted.

“These steps will lead to safer and more secure skies,” he said. “Our experts have lifted components of the Chinese balloon’s payload off the ocean floor. We’re analysing them as I speak. And what we learn will strengthen our capabilities.”

A day earlier, the Senate unanimously passed two resolutions condemning China’s use of the balloon.

One, a bipartisan measure, labelled the incident a “brazen violation of United States sovereignty”.

It mirrored a House resolution passed last week but called for congressional briefings on the incident, including US intelligence gathered while tracking the balloon, allied collaboration and efforts to hold China accountable.

The second, a Republican-led resolution, denounced China for acting in “violation of international law” and urged Biden to be “transparent” with Congress and the public.

Resolutions reflect the will of Congress and lack the power of law.

US only ‘recently’ concluded Chinese balloons used for global spying: Pentagon

Biden, a former Democratic senator from Delaware, pledged to keep lawmakers and allies apprised as developments and policy unfold.

“I’ll be sharing with Congress these classified policy parameters when they’re completed,” he said. “And they’ll remain classified so we don’t give our road map to our enemies to try to evade our defences.”

China on Thursday before Biden’s speech said the balloon incident was a test of Washington’s ability to manage a crisis.

“The US needs to stop stressing the importance of communication and dialogue while fuelling tensions and escalating the crisis,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin. “The US should also give an explanation for eavesdropping on and stealing secrets from countries around the world.”

Additional reporting by Bochen Han in Washington