The unmanned Chinese balloon that entered US airspace was an accident caused by “force majeure”. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said, adding that “it is a civilian airship used for research purposes, mainly meteorological. It has limited self-steering capabilities, and has deviated a lot from its planned route”.
The spokesperson further said that maintaining “contact and communication at all levels” was an important common understanding reached by the Chinese and US presidents at their meeting in Bali – a reference to the three-hour meeting between the president of the United Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping in November. And “this is a completely unexpected situation caused by force majeure and the facts are very clear.”
“China always acts in strict compliance with international law – he underlined – and respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries. We have no intention of violating and have never violated the territory or airspace of any sovereign country. Some politicians and media in the United States instead supported him to attack and vilify China. But we are firmly against this.” Yesterday, the Pentagon flatly denied the Chinese government’s claim that the balloon is for civilian research purposes, saying the United States knows it is a “surveillance balloon.”