The United States has claimed the ‘spy’ balloon that entered American airspace on 28 January was launched from Hainan Island near China’s south coast. Located on the northern edge of the South China Sea, this 35,000 sq km island, known for its beaches, is home to a major base of the PLA Navy
The United States has claimed that the Chinese “spy” balloon that lingered in American airspace before being shot down on 4 February was launched from Hainan Island near China’s south coast.
As per The Washington Post, US military and intelligence agencies had been tracking the balloon for nearly a week before it entered American airspace in late January.
The agencies initially believed that the balloon would reach the US territory of Guam, but it took an unexpected northern turn.
The balloon traversed to Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, miles away from Guam, and then hovered over Canada, after which strong winds drifted the balloon south into the continental US, the officials told The Washington Post.
The officials are now entertaining the possibility that the balloon did not intentionally penetrate the US airspace and its course deviation may have been an accident.
The Chinese foreign ministry has rejected US’ surveillance claims, saying the balloon – roughly the size of three buses – was a “civilian airship” used mainly for “meteorological” research.
However, US intelligence officials are of the view that the Chinese balloon is a part of “an extensive surveillance” programme run by China’s military partly out of Hainan, CNN reported.
source: firstpost