China spy balloon - live: Canada spots high-altitude surveillance balloon after US military
After the US military, now Canada has confirmed spotting a high-altitude surveillance balloon and said that its movements are being actively tracked.
“Canadians are safe and Canada is taking steps to ensure the security of its airspace, including the monitoring of a potential second incident,” Canada’s national defence said in a statement.
The US military and Pentagon officials confirmed a suspected Chinese high-altitude “spy balloon” which made its way over the northern United States.
Pentagon spokesman brigadier general Patrick Ryder said the US has so far decided against shooting down the surveillance balloon.
The spy balloon, which is the size of three buses, was spotted over Billings, Montana, on Wednesday. It entered the US after flying in over the Aleutian Islands and made its way through Canada.
Washington has “very high confidence” it is a Chinese high-altitude balloon and it was flying over sensitive sites to collect information, a senior defence official said.
China asks US to remain ‘cool headed’ over balloon incident
08:35 , Arpan Rai
Chinese officials have asked the US to stay “cool headed” after reports of a high-altitude surveillance balloon over American territory’s sensitive military facilities emerged today.
“We have no intention to violate other countries’ sovereignty and airspace,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said in Beijijng.
“We are gathering and verifying the facts. We hope the relevant parties will handle the matter in a cool-headed way,” Ms Ning said.
China defends spy balloon allegations and says it is ‘a responsible country’
10:11 , Arpan Rai
Officials in Beijing have termed China a responsible nation amid allegations of violating the US airspace by floating a surveillance balloon this week.
“China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international laws, and China has no intention of violating the territory and airspace of any sovereign country. As for the balloon, as I’ve mentioned just now, we are looking into and verifying the situation and hope that both sides can handle this together calmly and carefully,” Chinese foreign affairs ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said today.
Could giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites?
09:51 , Arpan Rai
A suspected Chinesespy ballon was traveling over a number of sensitive sites in the US, a defence official has said, triggering speculation its location and route could be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites.
A Pentagon official told a press briefing in Washington DC the suspected balloon had been spotted over Billings, Montana, on Wednesday.
It had first flown over the Aleutian Islands, through Canada, and into Montana.
Read the full story here:
Could giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites?
Giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ discovered hovering high above northern US
09:35 , Arpan Rai
A massive surveillance balloon has been spotted hovering over the northern US, a Pentagon official said on Thursday.
Officials considered shooting down the craft, described by one US official as the size of three buses, while it flew over Montana on Wednesday, before that option was ruled out over conerns about debris.
“The United States government has detected and is tracking a high-altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now,” Pentagon spokesperson Brig Gen Pat Ryder told NBC News. “We continue to track and monitor it closely.”
Read the full story here:
Giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ discovered hovering high above northern US
Joe Biden briefed on suspected Chinese spy balloon
07:55 , Arpan Rai
President Joe Biden has been briefed about the suspected Chinese spy balloon, a senior administration official, who was also not authorized to publicly discuss sensitive information, has said.
Defence secretary Lloyd Austin and Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, advised against taking “kinetic action” because of risks to the safety of people on the ground. Biden accepted that recommendation.
Montana home to one of three nuclear missile silo fields in US
07:03 , Graeme Massie
Chinese spy balloon visible to commercial pilots – official
07:01 , Arpan Rai
A US defence official has said that the suspected Chinese spy balloon was large enough that it was visible to commercial pilots despite its high altitude.
The official did not specify the exact dimensions of the balloon.
All air traffic was halted at Montana’s Billings Logan International Airport from 1.30pm to 3.30pm on Wednesday, as the military provided options to the White House.
US tracking Chinese spy balloon
06:02 , Graeme Massie
Canada monitoring potential second incident of suspected ‘spy balloon’
05:45 , Arpan Rai
Canada’s national defence has confirmed a potential second incident of a suspected Chinese spy balloon today and said that officials are monitoring it.
“A high-altitude surveillance balloon was detected and its movements are being actively tracked by [North American Aerospace Defense Command] NORAD,” the national defence said in a statement.
“Canadians are safe and Canada is taking steps to ensure the security of its airspace, including the monitoring of a potential second incident,” the statement added.
Canada monitoring potential second incident of suspected ‘Chinese spy balloon’
Giant Chinese spy balloon discovered hovering high above northern US
05:05 , Graeme Massie
Military ‘acted immediately’ to protect sensitive information.
Giant Chinese spy balloon discovered hovering high above northern US
Canada says monitoring potential second incident of Chinese spy balloon
04:52 , Arpan Rai
Canada’s national defence has confirmed another potential second incident of a suspect Chinese spy balloon today and said that the officials are monitoring it.
“A high-altitude surveillance balloon was detected and its movements are being actively tracked by NORAD. Canadians are safe and Canada is taking steps to ensure the security of its airspace,” the national defence said in a statement.
It added: “Canada’s intelligence agencies are working with American partners and continue to take all necessary measures to safeguard Canada’s sensitive information from foreign intelligence threats.”
We remain in frequent contact with our American allies as the situation develops, the Canadian national defence said.
House speaker slams ‘China’s brazen disregard’ over spy balloon
04:48 , Arpan Rai
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy slammed the incident of Chinese spy balloon hovering in the US skies.
“China’s brazen disregard for US sovereignty is a destabilizing action that must be addressed, and President Biden cannot be silent. I am requesting a Gang of Eight briefing,” he said in a tweet.
The administration official said congressional leaders were briefed on the matter Thursday afternoon.
China’s brazen disregard for U.S. sovereignty is a destabilizing action that must be addressed, and President Biden cannot be silent.
I am requesting a Gang of Eight briefing. https://t.co/KarTCUzbOS— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) February 3, 2023
F-22s were scrambled after balloon detected
04:23 , Graeme Massie
“You did see reports yesterday of a ground stop at Billings Airport and the mobilization of a number of assets, including F-22,” a senior defence official told reporters.
“The context for that was that we put some things on station in the event that a decision was made to bring this down while it was over Montana.
“So we wanted to make sure we were coordinating with civil authorities to empty out the airspace around that potential area. But even with those protective measures taken, it was the judgment of our military commanders that we didn’t drive the risk down low enough. So we didn’t take the shot.”
Montana governor says deeply troubled: ‘From spy balloon to TikTok'
04:16 , Arpan Rai
Montana governor Greg Gianforte has said he has been briefed about the situation after the Montana National Guard was notified of an ongoing military operation taking place in Montana airspace, a statement from the Republican governor and spokesperson Brooke Stroyke said.
“From the spy balloon to the Chinese Communist Party spying on Americans through TikTok to CCP-linked companies buying American farmland, I’m deeply troubled by the constant stream of alarming developments for our national security,” Mr Gianforte said in a statement.
Chinese spy balloon does not pose 'physical threat' – Pentagon official
03:46 , Arpan Rai
Brig Gen Patrick Ryder, a Pentagon press secretary, said in a statement: “[The balloon] currently traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground.”
He added: “Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years. Once the balloon was detected, the US government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.”
Why the location covered by Chinese spy balloon is critical for the US
03:35 , Arpan Rai
The sites covered by the giant Chinese spy balloon have been zeroed down to Montana.
Its route would take it over the Montana headquarters of the 41st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, which operates and maintains intercontinental ballistic missiles, the New York Times reports.
Montana has long been the location for some of the US’s nuclear arsenal and is home to one of three known major nuclear missile silo fields. The other two are in Wyoming and North Dakota.
The Air Force at Malmstrom maintains 150 intercontinental ballistic missile silos across its 13,800-square-mile complex in central Montana, according to the Pentagon.
Could giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites?
03:34 , Graeme Massie
150 warheads located at Malmstrom Air Force Base.
Could giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites?
Could giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites?
03:23 , Arpan Rai
A suspected Chinese spy ballon has been detcted traveling over a number of sensitive sites in the US, a defence official has said, triggering speculation its location and route could be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites.
A Pentagon official told a press briefing in Washington DC the suspected balloon had been spotted over Billings, Montana, on Wednesday.
It had first flown over the Aleutian Islands, through Canada, and into Montana.
Read the full story here:
Could giant ‘Chinese spy balloon’ be linked to Montana’s nuclear missile sites?
Chinese spy balloon flying over sensitive sites to collect information – Pentagon official
03:16 , Arpan Rai
Officials in the Pentagon have said that the US has “very high confidence” that the Chinese high-altitude balloon was flying over sensitive sites to collect information.
One of the places the balloon was spotted was in Montana — home to the US’s one of the three nuclear missile silo fields at Malmstrom Air Force Base, said a senior defense official.
Everything we know about ‘Chinese spy balloon’ found hovering above northern US
02:45 , Graeme Massie
White House has so far decided against shooting down balloon over Montana.
Everything we know about ‘Chinese spy balloon’ found hovering above northern US
Marjorie Taylor Greene urges Biden to shoot down balloon
02:30 , Graeme Massie
“Biden should shoot down the Chinese spy balloon immediately. President Trump would have never tolerated this. President Trump would have never tolerated many things happening to America,” the Republican lawmaker tweeted on Thursday.
Biden should shoot down the Chinese spy balloon immediately.
President Trump would have never tolerated this.
President Trump would have never tolerated many things happening to America.— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) February 2, 2023
Why has US not shot down spy balloon?
02:05 , Graeme Massie
“Why not shoot it down? We have to do the risk-reward here,” a senior defence official told reporters.
“So the first question is, does it pose a threat, a physical kinetic threat, to individuals in the United States in the US homeland? Our assessment is it does not.
“ Does it pose a threat to civilian aviation? Our assessment is it does not. Does it pose a significantly enhanced threat on the intelligence side? Our best assessment right now is that it does not.
“So given that profile, we assess the risk of downing it, even if the probability is low in a sparsely populated area of the debris falling and hurting someone or damaging property, that it wasn’t worth it.”
Department of Defense’s statement on balloon
01:01 , Graeme Massie
DoD Statement on High-Altitude Surveillance Balloon
Meteorolgist tracks spy balloon
00:45 , Graeme Massie
Montana governor issues statement on spy balloon
00:29 , Graeme Massie
“I received an informational briefing yesterday on the situation involving a suspected Chinese spy balloon flying over Montana,” said Governor Greg Gianforte
“From the spy balloon to the Chinese Communist Party spying on Americans through TikTok to CCP-linked companies buying American farmland, I’m deeply troubled by the constant stream of alarming developments for our national security.”
What did Pentagon say about spy balloon?
00:12 , Graeme Massie
“The United States Government has detected and is tracking a high altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now,” said Brig Gen Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary.
“The US government, to include NORAD, continues to track and monitor it closely. The balloon is currently travelling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground.
“Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years.
“Once the balloon was detected, the US government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.”
Spy balloon spotted over Montana
Thursday 2 February 2023 23:28 , Graeme Massie
Suspected Chinese spy balloon spotted over Montana
Thursday 2 February 2023 23:09 , Graeme Massie
The balloon brought air traffic in Billings to a halt on Wednesday as it hovered over the city.
China spy balloon blog
Thursday 2 February 2023 22:56 , Graeme Massie
Good afternoon, this is a live blog covering the detection of a suspected Chinese spy balloon hovering over the US. More follows.
