Not Just US, Spy balloons from China targeted India

Apart from the US, China's spy balloons had targeted several countries including India.

Washington, Feb 08: Amid tensions between the US and China over the spy balloon incident, it has now been reported that Beijing has targeted many countries including India by operating a fleet of surveillance airships.

Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman on Monday briefed its allies and friends including over the recent Chinese balloon which was shot down by Washington after as it crossed the continental America after hovering over its skies from Montana to South Carolina.

"The surveillance balloon effort, which has operated for several years partly out of Hainan province off China's south coast, has collected information on military assets in countries and areas of emerging strategic interest to China including Japan, India, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines," according to a reportin The Washington Post.

The report was based on interviews with several anonymous defence and intelligence officials. The surveillance airships have been spotted over five continents, the report said. "These balloons are all part of a PRC (People's Republic of China) fleet of balloons developed to conduct surveillance operations, which also violated the sovereignty of other countries," a senior defence official was quoted as saying.

Apart from the one tracked last week, at least four balloons have been discovered flying on the skies of Hawaii, Florida, Texas and Guam, and three of the four instances occurred during Donald Trump's rule.

The balloon incident has intensified tensions between China and US.

While Beijing has downplayed the incident by saying that the balloon was an errant weather observation aircraft with no military purpose, the US called it as a sophisticated high-altitude spying vehicle.

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden on Tuesday spoke about the "serious challenges" his country faces "across the world" while warning China that Washington "will act to protect sovereignty if threatened".

"If China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country. Let's be clear, winning the competition with China should unite all of us. We face serious challenges across the world. In the past two years, democracies have become stronger, not weaker," he said his first major speech to a divided Congress after Republicans took control of the House of Representatives.