Berlin
A US official warns that China’s spy balloon sighted over the United States is part of a large-scale surveillance program.
The alleged Chinese spy balloon, which was sighted and shot down over the USA, is said to be part of a global surveillance program by China. The “Washington Post” learned this from US intelligence circles. Accordingly, the balloons are controlled by the Chinese military from Hainan Province on China’s southern coast.
The Chinese military is said to have collected information about military installations in several countries, including Japan, India, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines. In total, the balloons have already been spotted over five continents, according to the anonymous source from the United States US Secret Services. The USA now wants to share its information with affected third countries. The Foreign Ministry briefed about 150 people from 40 embassies on Monday.
China continues to deny allegations
The recent emergence of a suspected Chinese espionage surveillance balloons over US territory has further cooled the already chilly relations between the two countries. The US military shot down the Chinese balloon off the coast of the state of South Carolina over the Atlantic. Washington accuses China of using the balloon to spy on military installations. The government in Beijing, on the other hand, spoke of a civilian research balloon that had gone off course.
“The Chinese have an incredibly old one technology combined with modern communications and observation capabilities to gather information about other countries’ armed forces,” the Washington Post quoted an unnamed US government official as saying.
According to the newspaper, the US State Department has contacted each US Embassy sent detailed information about the surveillance balloons that can be shared with allies and partners. “Our allies and partners are very interested,” said the government representative. (lro/dpa)
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