On Monday, President Joe Biden’s administration said it was still investigating allegations that a surveillance balloon above crucial military sites sent China real-time data earlier this year.
NBC News reported on Monday that the Chinese balloon could send data back to Beijing in real time despite the U.S. government’s efforts to prevent it. This might fuel Republican criticism of Biden for waiting for the balloon to reach a safe position before shooting it down.
NBC quoted three top U.S. officials.
The White House and Pentagon told reporters they could not corroborate that account. Military experts were still studying the wreckage when the balloon was shot down on February 4.
“I could not confirm that there was real-time transmission from the balloon back to (China) at this time,” said Pentagon spokesman Sabrina Singh. “That’s something we’re examining right now.”
On Tuesday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that the unmanned civilian blimp that sailed over U.S. territory was “an unexpected and isolated incident.”
“China condemns misrepresentation and hyping up of this issue,” spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a regular briefing.
After a week over the U.S. and Canada, Biden ordered the U.S. military to shoot down the balloon off the Atlantic Coast. China says it was a spy craft.
According to Reuters, U.S. authorities think Beijing controlled the high-altitude balloon, which steered left and right above the U.S.
U.S. authorities downplayed the balloon’s national security effect at the time, claiming it limited its capacity to gather data on important U.S. facilities. It also downplayed the balloon’s capacity to collect more information than Chinese espionage satellites while conceding its ability to stay longer above U.S. areas.
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