William Molinié, edited by Gauthier Delomez with AFP 7:53 p.m., February 3, 2023

Has China decided to provoke the United States?

The Pentagon discovered on the night of Thursday to Friday a balloon in the American sky which could be a Chinese spy airship.

If fighter planes approached the machine, the American military decided not to shoot it down because of the lack of danger.

This is an option which had nevertheless been considered by the Pentagon.

The United States has considered destroying a suspected Chinese spy balloon in American skies, spotted overnight from Thursday to Friday.

Fighter planes even took off to approach the airship.

But the soldiers did not attempt to neutralize him.

In reality, its destruction would have caused risks of debris for the populations on the ground.

Also, there was no civilian threat or intelligence threat.

>> READ ALSO

- Spy balloon in North America: China wants to avoid an escalation of tensions

Clearly, this balloon does not represent an existential danger for Washington, but rather a kind of provocation coming straight from Beijing.

Inexpensive material

Whether it is a real spy airship or a simple meteorological observation, the Chinese show through this their ability to copy or even surpass American technologies.

Indeed, this equipment is much less expensive than the satellites sent into space, and it can take pictures and bring back quality information.

Blinken postpones visit to Beijing

US Foreign Minister Antony Blinken postponed a planned visit to Beijing on Friday after a suspected Chinese spy balloon was detected in US airspace, despite Chinese authorities expressing "regret" for the intrusion, they say "involuntary".

"We have taken note of the regrets expressed by China but the presence of this balloon in our airspace is a clear violation of our sovereignty as well as international law and it is unacceptable," a senior American official told reporters. covered with anonymity.

Asked about the Chinese "regrets", Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder replied: "The fact is that it is a spy balloon", refusing to give more details.

It is a kind of snub sent to Joe Biden's America in the struggle for influence led by the two giants.

For Xi Jinping's China, it is a question of showing what the country manages to do, and for much less.

At the moment, the balloon is still sailing over the United States.

The Pentagon spokesman said it was above commercial air traffic and posed "no military or physical threat to those on the ground."