The sequel to the affair of the Chinese balloon shot down by the United States after crossing the whole country. We are beginning to know a little more about this device called ” spy by the United States, but that does not preclude questions.
With our correspondent in Washington, Guillaume Naudin
It is going to be difficult for China to continue to claim that this is a weather balloon that has veered off course.
According to the US State Department, the object shot down last Saturday by an F-22 over the Atlantic carried many devices intended to collect information. In particular, what to intercept different types of communication.
The balloon may have been approached by U2 spy planes before being shot down. According to their observations, solar panels were also used to supply their systems with electricity.
Early debris has begun to be examined, and State Department officials say the equipment was made by a Chinese company known to be close to the military. This would be a program that has been in place for several years.
Balloons flew over forty countries on five continents. The House of Representatives passed a resolution unanimously condemning the Chinese actions.
But this rare bipartisan momentum does not prevent the affair from taking a political turn. A closed-door House briefing has reportedly been particularly tense, and Republicans on the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee are questioning why the military waited for the balloon to fly across the country. before shooting him down.
►Also read: Washington evokes a “fleet” of Chinese spy balloons