High-altitude balloons have become a commonly used tool for weather monitoring by various nations worldwide. However, the United States recently produced a series of “spying” dramas together with China. Evoking use of something called high altitude reconnaissance. What is the US Spy Balloon controversy, anyways?
The US’s recent move has been heightening tensions and causing significant harm to China’s rights by force. And that so too particularly related to China’s unmanned airship that went out of control.
What is the US Spy Balloon controversy?
On Sunday, February 19th, China issued a warning to the United States, indicating that the US would face the full consequences if it were to escalate the conflict.
The comment relates to the action surrounding a Chinese balloon that the US military had shot down earlier this month. According to the foreign ministry’s statement, Beijing would persist until the end if “the US insists on taking advantage of the issue.”
- The incident took place on February 4, when a US military aircraft downed a Chinese surveillance balloon that had flown over North America.
- While Washington claims the balloon was a Chinese spy aircraft, Beijing argues that it was a weather-monitoring device that had gone off course.
What did The US and China talk about?
- Following a meeting between top diplomat Wang Yi and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the fringes of the Munich Security Conference, China issued the statement.
During their meeting on Saturday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken cautioned China’s top diplomat Wang Yi about the “irresponsible act” of flying a spy balloon into US airspace and emphasized that such actions should not be repeated. This exchange occurred against the backdrop of the ongoing balloon controversy.
During the hour-long meeting, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was “very direct and candid,” according to a senior State Department official.
Blinken emphasized that the United States will not tolerate any infringement upon its sovereignty and warned Chinese top diplomat Wang Yi about the consequences that may result if China provides material support to Russia or engages in systemic sanctions evasion, stated State Department spokesperson Ned Price.
What are Spy Balloons?
As technological innovations continue to emerge, scientific research organizations and companies worldwide are increasing their balloon-based research activities, leading to more frequent cross-border flights, including those originating from the United States. In such instances, communication and dialogue are frequently employed to resolve any issues that may arise.
Has the US been doing similar Spy Balloon reconnaissance for a while?
The use of high-altitude balloons for scientific research has become a widely accepted practice on the global stage. According to data published in the China Science Daily, the United States released over 2,000 high-altitude balloons in 2018, France released around 3,000, and Japan released more than 800.
- The dismay of the US’s branding of the Chinese Balloon as High Altitude Reconnaissance has been defended on a few pointers. Primarily involving the argument that if China actually had to do it, one would rather utilize satellites for the same.
- An exclusive report obtained by the Global Times on Monday reveals that the US military has conducted repeated close-range reconnaissance on China, including the deployment of balloons. This makes the US one of the world’s foremost countries in terms of espionage activities.
Is The US Spy Balloon controversy entirely the fault of U.S?
In turn, Wang expressed that the relationship between the two nations had been significantly harmed by the US reaction to the balloon incident.
According to MizarVision, a Chinese technology and intelligence firm, the US military carried out more than 600 close-range reconnaissance operations in the South China Sea in 2022 using spy planes, based on data from the open-source Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B).
MizarVision stated that the actual number of missions may be even higher, as some US aircraft disable their ADS-B trackers or employ fake ones to evade detection.
MizarVision also noted similar close-range reconnaissance sorties were observed in the East China Sea, including during large-scale exercises conducted by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) around Taiwan’s island in August.
SOURCES: The Print, Global Times
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