Beijing and Hong Kong
CNN
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The balloon spotted in the skies of Latin America is from China and was used for flight tests, a spokesman for China’s foreign ministry said Monday in response to CNN’s question.
This is the first time that Beijing has confirmed that balloons found in two Latin American countries are Chinese.
China’s foreign ministry spokesman Mao Ning told a regular press briefing on Monday that the balloon “seriously deviated” from its planned course and “accidentally” plunged into the skies of Latin America and the Caribbean. .
This is the second Chinese balloon that Beijing claims was thrown off course by weather after U.S. forces shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon that had flown over the mainland United States for several days on Saturday. .
“China is a responsible country. We have always adhered to international law. bottom.
The Colombian Air Force and Costa Rica’s Civil Aviation Authority confirmed last week that a white observation balloon similar to one spotted over the United States was tracked in their airspace, but they do not believe the vessel is Chinese. I didn’t.
A similar high-altitude Chinese balloon has been flying over the United States for most of last week.
It was first detected by the North American Aerospace Defense Command as it drifted east over Alaska on January 28. The balloon then crossed Canada to the United States and hovered briefly over a classified missile facility in Montana, officials said.
The balloon was being used for surveillance purposes, according to U.S. officials, and the Pentagon tracked the balloon for several days as it passed over the northern United States before a U.S. fighter jet was spotted on Saturday. It was shot down over the Atlantic Ocean.
China expressed anger that the plane had been shot down and reiterated earlier claims that the balloon was for civilian use and accidentally drifted into US airspace.
Multiple US Navy and Coast Guard ships were working to retrieve debris in the area. The Pentagon has begun “joint work” with the FBI and “counterintelligence agencies” to help “classify and evaluate the platform itself,” a senior military official said.
