What is the Chinese spy balloon that was shot down by the US?

It continued its journey through Canadian airspace before floating back into the US, travelling over northern Idaho before flying over Montana, near the Malmstrom Air Force Base, where several nuclear missile silos are housed, on Wednesday, February 1.

As US’s fears over China collecting sensitive military information about the nation heightened, President Biden gave the go-ahead to take down the balloon “as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to American lives under the balloon’s path”.

On Saturday, February 4, the balloon was shot down by the US air force, causing increasing tension between the US and China.

However, on the same day, another balloon was spotted over Latin America, with Colombia following it until it left their airspace.

Here is everything we know about the balloon suspected to be spyware sent over by China.

What has China said about the spy balloon?

In a statement released on Friday, February 3, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China said: “Regarding the unintended entry of a Chinese unmanned airship into US airspace due to force majeure, the Chinese side has verified it and communicated it to the US side. It is a civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological, purposes.

“Affected by the Westerlies and with limited self-steering capability, the airship deviated far from its planned course. This is entirely an unexpected situation caused by force majeure and the facts are very clear.

“China always acts in strict accordance with international law and respects the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries. We have no intention to violate and have never violated the territory or airspace of any sovereign country. Some politicians and media in the US have hyped it up to attack and smear China. The Chinese side is firmly opposed to that.”

The ministry said it’s important for both parties to act in a “cool-headed” and “prudent” manner when facing unexpected situations like these in order to protect diplomatic relations.

China has since threatened “further actions” in response to America’s “serious overreaction”, with Beijing’s foreign ministry sharing: “China will resolutely uphold the relevant company’s legitimate rights and interests and, at the same time, reserving the right to take further actions in response.”

In regards to the second balloon that is travelling across Latin America, China admitted that their aircraft had “accidentally entered Latin American and Caribbean airspace” but insisted that it mistakenly journeyed there because of weather conditions.

Are US officials worried about the spy balloon?

US officials initially communicated that they were not overly concerned as they knew “exactly where the balloon is and exactly where it is passing over”.

After the balloon was shot down, the administration revealed that they had taken steps to stop the balloon from collecting information that could threaten national security during its week-long journey.

Since the destruction of the balloon, US Navy divers have been working to recover the wreckage, so that experts can analyse the equipment.

The former chair of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mike Mullen, believes this was a deliberate act of intelligence-farming, as the balloon has propellers on it, which would make it manoeuvrable.

He said: “This was not an accident. This was deliberate. It was intelligence.”

What exactly is a spy balloon, and why are they used?

A spy balloon is a relatively unused piece of arsenal these days. High-altitude balloons were used for military missions, mainly by Japan in the Second World War.

They float to an intended area using jetstream air currents and can scan wide areas of territory but cannot be directly steered.

Balloons are cheaper to run than satellites. Most satellite-surveillance equipment requires Space launchers, which cost hundreds of millions. Balloons can be launched relatively cheaply.