WASHINGTON, Feb 9 — The United States said Wednesday that suspected Chinese spy balloons like the one it shot down were part of a “fleet” that has spanned five continents, as Nato joined in voicing concern.
“We’re doing so because the United States was not the only target of this broader program, which has violated the sovereignty of countries across five continents,” he told a joint news conference with Nato’s visiting chief. China insists that the balloon was merely conducting weather research, but the Pentagon described it as a high-tech spying operation. The balloon floated at an altitude far higher than most airplanes and crossed directly over at least one sensitive US military site.Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, whose visit to Washington followed a trip to Japan and South Korea, said the balloon showed the need for countries across the alliance to protect themselves.
Stoltenberg also issued a new warning that China was drawing lessons from the war in Ukraine, which Nato countries have been supporting as it fights back Russian invaders. Biden, in his State of the Union address on Tuesday, said that his orders to shoot down the balloon showed that the United States would not hesitate to act when needed.
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