February 9, US President Joe Biden said he did not consider the Chinese hot air balloon’s flight over US airspace to be a serious breach of security.
In an interview with the Noticias Telemundo television channel, President Biden said that the Chinese balloon’s flight over the US airspace violated international law, but it was not a serious violation.
He also did not regret not having ordered the balloon to be shot down sooner because the US military was concerned that this would cause the balloon’s debris to fall into residential areas.
[Trung Quốc trao công hàm phản đối Mỹ bắn hạ khinh khí cầu]
Biden’s statement goes against the position of the US House of Representatives.
With 419 votes in favor and no against, the US House of Representatives on February 9 unanimously supported a resolution opposing the China hot air balloon flying over this country’s airspace, considering this a serious violation of US sovereignty.
In addition, the resolution emphasizes the need for US policy to act quickly and decisively to prevent foreign aerial surveillance platforms from encroaching on US airspace, and calls on the Biden administration to update information to the House by providing comprehensive summary reports on the case.
Earlier, US media reported that the country’s warplane shot down a Chinese hot air balloon flying over US airspace in the area off the Carolina coast, in the Atlantic Ocean, on the afternoon of February 4 (local time).
In the latest statement, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said the balloon analysis is currently in its early stages.
The FBI has only recovered very little physical evidence from the balloon and still doesn’t have enough information to be able to assess the object’s capabilities.
China’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that the balloon was used for scientific research purposes, mainly meteorological research.
In a statement on February 5 after the shooting down, the ministry affirmed that the appearance of this civilian hot air balloon in US airspace was unintentional, due to the influence of wind and limited self-correction ability. so the balloon went too far from the expected route.
Together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of National Defense of China issued a statement protesting the US military’s action to shoot down the hot air balloon.
Dang Anh-Doan Hung (VNA/Vietnam+)