IIn the balloon scandal, China has accused the US of illegally flying high-altitude balloons over China more than 10 times in the past year. The US should stop blaming others and seeking confrontation, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told the press in Beijing on Monday. It is quite common for American balloons to fly at high altitudes over other countries.
The US also sent planes and warships to collect intelligence on China, the spokesman said. There have already been 64 missions in the South China Sea this year. China claims a large part of the disputed sea area. The international arbitral tribunal in The Hague dismissed the claims in 2016. However, Beijing ignores the verdict and builds military facilities there.
“It’s pretty clear which country is the leading spy empire in the world,” the spokesman said. He also referred to the wiretapping activities and the large network of US agents. The US intercepted foreign government leaders’ conversations and messages from Germany, France, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands and other European countries.
The spokesman reiterated that the entry into American airspace of the Chinese balloon shot down a week ago was a “completely unexpected and isolated event” caused by “force majeure”. He had “no information” on the other flying objects reported afterwards.