Washington, (EFE).- The US Secretary of Defense, Lloyd J. Austin, confirmed this Saturday that the United States, by an order given by President Joe Biden last Wednesday, has “successfully” shot down the Chinese “spy balloon”. that had been flying over the territory for days.
Through a statement, he specified that the device, “which was being used by the People’s Republic of China in an attempt to monitor strategic sites in the continental United States” was shot down with two combat planes over the waters, off the coast of South Carolina.
Minutes later, Biden himself spoke briefly, who declared to the media that accompanied him that the balloon had been shot down “successfully” and that he himself gave the order last Wednesday.
Biden authorized shooting down the globe
This is also explained by the Defense statement: “On Wednesday, President Biden gave his authorization to shoot down the surveillance balloon as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to the lives of Americans who are in the trajectory of the balloon” .
After “careful analysis,” US military commanders “determined that shooting down the balloon while on the ground posed an undue risk to people over a wide area because of the size and altitude of the balloon and its surveillance payload.”
Support from Canada
The Department of Defense developed options to shoot down the balloon “safely” over the water and decided to finally carry out the action this Saturday, which “was taken in coordination with and with the full support of the Canadian Government.”
“This Saturday’s deliberate and lawful action demonstrates that President Biden and his national security team will always put the security of the American people first while responding effectively to the PRC’s unacceptable violation of our sovereignty.” ends the statement.
