The Pentagon said Friday evening it spotted another Chinese spy balloon – this one in Latin America – as a similar balloon from China was making its way across the continental United States.
Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said the Defense Department was aware of reports of another balloon “transiting Latin America”. We now assess that this is another Chinese surveillance balloon.” He did not give further details about its location.
Earlier Friday the Pentagon said it would not attempt to remove the balloon in US airspace because “any potential debris field would be significant” and could cause “civilian injuries or deaths or significant property damage” – but the response Did not provide plan to deliver “U.S. Airspace and International Law.
The giant balloon has ignited domestic curiosities, political finger-pointing and an international diplomatic crisis, leaving Americans looking skyward for the white floating device over the heart of the country.
Where it will go – and whether the US military may eventually choose to shoot it out of the sky – is unknown, but officials have confirmed that it continues to move east across the continental United States and defy Beijing’s urgings Has been that it is a weather balloon that has blown off course.
Two senior defense officials told NBC News on Friday that the US is taking actions to weaken its surveillance capabilities, including using counterintelligence measures to obscure its views and physically moving things out of its way. is included.
Earlier, a senior US defense official had said that the US assessed that the balloons had “limited additive value from an intelligence collection perspective that [China] could do through other means.”
On Friday afternoon, Ryder told reporters that the Pentagon “will continue to monitor and review options.”
“The balloon continues to move eastward and is currently over the center of the continental United States,” he said, adding, “We currently assess that the balloon does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground at this time.” “
When asked whether he was concerned that some Americans might attempt to “interfere” with the balloon – possibly, by intercepting it or attempting to shoot it down – Ryder noted that the balloon flew at an altitude of about 60,000 feet. Has been, which is about 11 miles up. floor. “This is well above the limit for civilian air traffic,” he said.
The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement that it was working with the Pentagon “to support any necessary US government response.”
The agency said, “The balloon does not currently pose a threat to civil aviation. If that changes, the FAA stands ready to take action.”
The Chinese government acknowledged that the U.S. The craft above says “is from China.”
“It is a civilian airplane used for research, mainly meteorological purposes,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website. It said the balloon “veered too far from its planned course” due to strong winds and lack of steering capability.
Ryder retorted, “The fact is we know it’s a surveillance balloon.”
“It has the ability to maneuver,” he said, refusing to go into specifics.
The US military had been monitoring the balloon for days, US officials and a senior defense official told NBC News on Thursday.
A US official said the Pentagon estimated the balloon to be the size of at least two school buses.
It was seen Wednesday in Billings, Montana, and flew through Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and Canada, officials said. The destination is notable because Montana is home to one of three nuclear missile silo areas in the US.
Ryder declined to reveal the exact location of the balloon on Friday.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan. said the balloon was over his state on Friday afternoon. “I can confirm Chinese spy ballon is over NE KS. My staff is in contact with law enforcement officials,” he tweeted. “I condemn any attempt by the Chinese to spy on Americans. “
A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry later said: “We have no intention of violating and have never violated any sovereign country’s territory or airspace.” And have exaggerated it to defame him.”
The discovery has raised tensions between the US and China, prompting Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone a planned visit to Beijing.
“We have concluded that conditions are not right at this time for Secretary Blinken to travel to China,” a senior State Department official said.
Blinken confirmed the suspension during a press briefing on Friday, but said “we will remain engaged with the PRC [People’s Republic of China] as this ongoing issue is resolved. The first step is to move the surveillance asset out of our location.” And that’s what we’re focusing on.”
Ryder told reporters on Friday that the balloon’s presence “violated US airspace and international law, which is unacceptable. We have communicated this directly to the PRC at multiple levels.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre made similar comments when asked about the balloons at a briefing Friday afternoon. President Joe Biden has not yet made a statement on the matter.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin convened a meeting of senior military and defense leaders on Wednesday, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley and NORTHCOM/NORAD Commander Gen. Glenn VanHerk, to discuss military options for bringing down the balloon .
A senior administration official told NBC on Thursday that Pentagon leaders presented these options to Biden on Wednesday and he was given a “strong recommendation” not to shoot down the balloon.
The official said that the administration “took immediate action to protect against the collection of sensitive information” being sought by the balloons, and noted that this was not the first time this had happened.
“Instances of this activity have been seen over the years, including before this administration,” the official said.
Asked Friday about those prior incidents, the rider declined to comment on specifics, citing the classified nature of those incidents, but acknowledged that “there have been past incidents.”
Sen. Jon Tester, a Democrat from Montana and chairman of the Defense Appropriations subcommittee in the Senate, announced Friday that he would hold a hearing on the Biden administration’s response to the balloon that appeared over his state.
“I am demanding answers from the Biden administration,” Tester said in a statement.
Several Republican lawmakers also criticized the administration’s response, with Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas saying Biden should “stop coddling and appeasing Chinese communists.” Bring the balloon down now and take advantage of its tech package, which could be an intelligence gift.”
Three familiar sources told NBC on Friday that staff members for the so-called Gang of Eight, a bipartisan group of leaders in Congress, were given a classified briefing on the balloon Thursday afternoon.
A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the group’s lawmakers would receive an in-person briefing from the administration next week.