China’s balloon was capable of spying on communications, US says
- U-2 spy planes that flew past the balloon revealed surveillance equipment that was inconsistent with Beijing’s claim it was a weather device
- Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said the Pentagon acted to limit what the balloon could learn about US nuclear capabilities
The alleged Chinese spy balloon that flew over the US was capable of collecting communications signals and was part of a broader People’s Liberation Army intelligence-gathering effort that spanned more than 40 countries, a State Department official said on Thursday.
High-resolution imagery provided by U-2 spy planes that flew past the balloon revealed an array of surveillance equipment that was inconsistent with Beijing’s claim that the balloon was a weather device blown off course, the official said in a statement provided on condition of anonymity.
The statement, released before State and defence Department officials were set to testify in hearings and briefings to Congress on Thursday, marks the fullest accounting yet for the Biden administration’s insistence over the course of a week-long drama that the balloon was meant to spy on the US.
02:34
Chinese balloon row: Joe Biden says US-China relations have not taken a big hit
Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said in an interview with CBS News that the Pentagon acted to limit what the balloon could learn about US nuclear capabilities. Austin said Chinese balloons flew over parts of the US in previous years, passing over Texas and Florida.
“Certainly all of our strategic assets, we made sure were buttoned down and movement was limited and communications were limited so that we did not expose any capability unnecessarily,” Austin said.
The US is now trying to expose and counter broader Chinese spying efforts alongside allies, the official said. It’s also looking at taking action against Chinese entities linked to the intelligence-gathering effort in US airspace after identifying a Chinese balloon manufacturer that sells products to the Chinese military.
The new details released on Thursday, including that this device was part of a broader military-directed fleet, will add to the strain on US-China relations.