The Chinese spy balloon that was recently shot down by the U.S. military has raised alarm bells over the presence of similar floating aircraft in American skies. The Pentagon confirmed that at least three other Chinese surveillance balloons were sighted in U.S. airspace during the Trump administration. The reported sightings took place near Texas, Florida, Hawaii and Guam.
As Republicans such as Kevin McCarthy and Marco Rubio criticized the Biden administration for failing to act sooner, Trump’s team has disputed the report of balloons during his time in office, calling it disinformation. The latest spy balloon was detected entering U.S. airspace off the coast of Alaska and eventually showed up in Montana after traveling through Canada. The Biden administration was aware of its presence Tuesday but took almost five days to shoot it down over the Atlantic Ocean after it had already loitered over sensitive military sites, according to The Associated Press.
Questions have arisen as to whether this delay was part of the administration’s strategy or a reckless mistake. The situation has prompted House Republicans to indicate plans to investigate the Biden administration’s response. Meanwhile, the debris from the balloon has been collected and is now being analyzed by the FBI and other U.S. intelligence agencies.
However, China is asserting its right to take action over what it views as an overreaction to the situation, adding fuel to the fire of an already heated international dispute.