The Pentagon has verified that a high altitude surveillance balloon is now over the continental United States, local news sources in Montana reported on Thursday.
According to the Pentagon, it is now tracking the Chinese spy balloon but has chosen not to fire it down for safety reasons, The Guardian reports.
The Balloon Is Being Observed To Ensure Security
According to defense authorities, the balloon has been monitored for a few days after it entered US territory and began flying at a great height.
It has been observed using different techniques such as manned planes, and was most recently seen crossing over Montana, the location of some of the US's silo-based nuclear weapons.
"The balloon is currently traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground," Pentagon spokesperson Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder says.
Despite this, flights from Billings Logan airport were halted on Wednesday out of caution, due to the unusual hovercraft floating around the area.
Additionally, Ryder assured the media that the government had taken urgent action to prevent the collecting of sensitive information, but he made no other mention of the measures done.
According to Gizmodo, the balloon was investigated by F-22 Raptors from Nellis Air Force Base, but officials would not confirm whether the balloon will be shot out of the sky or not.
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This Is Not The First Time Such Activity Has Been Observed
A video that claimed to reveal proof of the surveillance balloon temporarily became popular on Twitter, which shows the fuzzy, motionless dot in the sky.
The incident occurs at a time when relations between the United States and China are somewhat heated.
The US has started an arrangement with the Philippines that allows for increased collaboration and a larger deployment of US military forces in the region in an effort to offset China's influence in the Indo-Pacific.
Officials from the United States have frequently expressed concern over China's escalating actions in the South China Sea.
The US government took swift action to prevent the collecting of sensitive information when the balloon was discovered because previous instances of this type of balloon activity have been seen over the past few years.
The Guardian writes that the event occurs immediately before Antony Blinken's anticipated weekend trip to China, during which it is anticipated that the US secretary of state would meet Xi Jinping.
Although the trip has not been officially publicized, his impending arrival has been discussed in Beijing and Washington.
According to a senior US defense official, the US has expressed the seriousness of the situation to Chinese authorities through several channels of engagement.
Joe Biden was informed of the situation, according to Pentagon officials, who stated that there was "high confidence" that it was Chinese.
The president requested military options, but it was decided against them because of the likelihood that falling debris might hurt people on the ground.
Prior to flying over Billings, Montana on Wednesday, the object first passed across Canada and the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, according to officials.
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