(PLO) – The US confirmed that the Chinese balloon was used to collect communications and warnings against Chinese companies involved in the balloon.
On February 9, the US State Department said that the Chinese spy balloon (China) that was shot down by the US military on February 4 over the Atlantic Ocean was capable of collecting electronic communications data and belonged to the team. Chinese military’s spy balloon, according to the newspaper The New York Times.
According to the US State Department, while the balloon was still in the air, US U-2 reconnaissance planes took pictures to determine the balloon’s function. The ministry said the balloon’s equipment was “clearly for intelligence reconnaissance and the equipment on the balloon is not suitable for the purpose of collecting weather data.”
The ministry says that the balloon has multiple antennas “possibly to collect and locate communications” and that the solar panels on the balloon are large enough to generate the power to operate “multiple sensors that collect intellgence”.
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Divers recover pieces of a Chinese airship that was shot down off the coast of South Carolina. Photo: US Navy/AP |
The State Department statement said the US government believes the balloon company has direct commercial ties with the Chinese military, but does not name the company.
The US State Department warned: “The United States will also consider action against Chinese entities with ties to the Chinese military that support hot air balloons infringing on U.S. airspace…We will also review actions take stronger action to expose and address China’s larger-scale surveillance activities that pose a threat to US national security and to our allies and partners.”
U.S. officials do not know exactly what kind of communications the satellite is trying to collect, nor have they determined where the balloon was aimed.
According to US officials, investigators from the Pentagon, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and other intelligence agencies are examining parts of the recovered balloon to see if the Chinese military or whether businesses with ties to them are using technology from the United States or other Western companies.
The FBI told reporters during a press conference that the agency had only recovered very few pieces of the balloon and did not yet have enough information to assess its capabilities, according to the news agency. Archyde.com.
“It’s too early for us to talk about this process and the pieces of balloons that have been collected and turned over to the FBI are very few,” said an FBI officer.
FBI officials say they still have not had access to much of the balloon’s contents, such as electronics, and much of it remains underwater.
The US shared information about China’s hot air balloon case to 40 countries, accusing China’s “balloon fleet” of having a presence in 5 continents
(PLO) – US officials say Chinese spy balloons have been discovered in many countries and regions. The US has also shared with other countries information about the Chinese hot air balloon appearing in the US sky.
THU PHUONG