Washington assumes Chinese espionage and postpones the visit of the US Secretary of State. Beijing assures that it is only civil, meteorological research. The US has now pulled the balloon out of the sky – much to China’s annoyance.
The US has shot down the suspected Chinese spy balloon that has been flying over America in recent days. According to the AP news agency, footage showed the balloon falling into the sea after being shot down by a fighter jet carrying a missile. The airspace off the coast of the state of South Carolina had previously been closed before American military aircraft targeted the object over the Atlantic.