The Chinese balloon shot down by the United States in February over the Atlantic had not obtained intelligence while flying over US territory, the Pentagon said Thursday.
“We believe today that it did not collect any information while it was crossing or flying over the United States,” said Pat Ryder, a spokesman for the US Department of Defense.
The United States had “taken steps to limit” the gathering of intelligence from the balloon, he added, which “certainly helped.” Pat Ryder did not provide further details on these measures.
A chill in relations between Beijing and Washington
This mighty balloon had traversed the United States from west to east, from Alaska to South Carolina, from late January to early February. It had passed over strategic military installations.
The balloon was shot down on February 4 over the Atlantic and its remains were recovered by the US military, which has since studied its contents.
The incident had cooled relations between Beijing and Washington. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had canceled a long-planned trip to China.
Washington had claimed it was a spy balloon, which Beijing had denied, saying it had inadvertently entered US airspace.
At the time, a US official claimed that the device had multiple antennas, some of which were likely capable of picking up and geolocating communications.
However, in June, US President Joe Biden said he thought “Chinese leaders didn’t know” where the ball was or what was in it. “I think it was more embarrassing than intentional,” he added.
Source: BFM TV
