Feb 3, 2023
Thursday evening The Pentagon confirmed that the US government has been tracking what is being described as a high-altitude surveillance balloon from the People's Republic of China. The balloon, which entered continental US airspace a "couple of days ago," according to a senior defense official, is the latest sign of the growing severity of the power competition between China and the United States. The balloon, spotted above Montana, is floating at an altitude that The Pentagon described as "significantly above where civilian air traffic is active," but in the atmosphere and not in outer space. U.S. officials said a suspected Chinese spy balloon had been flying over the country for a couple of days, in what would be a brazen act ahead of a planned trip to Beijing by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken https://t.co/HmTkjARXMu pic.twitter.com/IKOuYHaizu- Reuters Asia (@ReutersAsia) February 3, 2023 Although defense officials expressed doubt that the balloon was