New Delhi: After Canada's Department of National Defence said that it is working with the United States to track a high-altitude suspected Chinese surveillance balloon, China on Friday said, it is looking into the report of the spy balloon over the US, it follows laws and has no intention of violating airspace, as reported by the news agency AP.
Earlier the defence department said, Canadians are safe and steps are being taken to ensure the safety of Canada's airspace. "Canadians are safe and Canada is taking steps to ensure the security of its airspace," the news agency AFP quoted the defence department as saying.
"A high-altitude surveillance balloon was detected and its movements are being actively tracked by North American Aerospace defence Command (NORAD). Canadians are safe and Canada is taking steps to ensure the security of its airspace, including the monitoring of a potential second incident," the Department of National Defence press release stated.
The situation is being closely assessed by NORAD, the Canadian Armed Forces, the Department of National Defence, and other partners. They are working in close coordination.
Canada's intelligence agencies are working with American partners and continue to take all necessary measures to safeguard Canada's sensitive information from foreign intelligence threats. Meanwhile, the US said that it is tracking a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that has been spotted over US airspace for a few days, reported The Globe and Mail.
United States Department of Defence Pentagon has said that it is tracking a Chinese spy balloon over the US, AFP reported. The Pentagon said that it decided not to shoot it down over concerns of hurting people on the ground. Secretary of defence Lloyd Austin convened a meeting with senior Department of Defence leadership Wednesday to discuss the balloon, and it was decided not to take military action due to "the risk to safety and security of people on the ground from the possible debris field," a senior US defence official said.
In response to a media query on whether the balloon is from China or from any other country, a senior defence official stated, "Yes, so, I mean, it is a surveillance balloon. And not to be -- I'm not trying to be a wise guy. But the goal is surveillance. And clearly, they're trying to fly this -- this balloon over sensitive sites, one of which was just mentioned, to collect information. As I said, we do not judge that it provides significant value added over and above what they can currently collect in other means. But nevertheless, it's something we're watching closely," as quoted by ANI.
"It is not the first time that you had a balloon of this nature cross over the continental United States. It has happened a handful of other times over the past few years, including before this administration," he added. He also said with 'high confidence' that the defence department believed that the balloon is from China.
"So we do not doubt that this is a PRC balloon. And that is an assessment shared across our intelligence and analytic community. Why not shoot it down? We have to do the risk-reward here. So the first question is does it pose a threat -- a physical kinetic threat to individuals in the United States or the US Homeland. Our assessment is it does not," the defence official stated, ANI reported.
The defence official said the balloon was recently over Montana and that officials were considering bringing the plane down with military assets, but decided against doing so because of the risks associated, adding that US President Joe Biden was briefed on the situation and asked for military options, as per the statement.
Meanwhile, Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Pat Ryder stated, "The United States Government has detected and is tracking a high altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now. The US government, including NORAD, continues to track and monitor it closely. The balloon is currently travelling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground. Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years. Once the balloon was detected, the US government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information," as quoted by ANI.