China Goes Into Crisis Management Mode On Balloon Fallout

Published: 2023-02-12
Views: 585
Author: Editorial
Published in: Politics

China is optimistic that there will soon be an easing of tensions with the United States in the months ahead.

China’s Foreign Ministry expressed this as China would “welcome” a visit from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

The expected visit is viewed by Beijing as an opportunity to help strengthen its economy and repair fraught diplomatic ties.

Meanwhile, China has maintained that the vessel, which was shot down by the US over the Atlantic Ocean was a weather balloon thrown off course.

While some crucial facts of the situation remain unclear, Beijing’s official response – and the timing of the incident, which resulted in the US’ postponement of the Blinken visit – suggest its leadership is now grappling with how to handle a diplomatic crisis that has inflamed the very tensions it had been hoping to mend.

According to CNN, Beijing has given sparse details on the origins of the balloon, which it first confirmed was from China in an explanation issued after the Pentagon announced it was tracking the object.

In a statement, China’s Foreign Ministry described the balloon as a “civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological,” which had deviated “far from its planned course” due to “limited self-steering capability” and westerly winds.

In a follow-up statement, Beijing appeared to link the device to “companies,” rather than its government or military – though in China the prominence of state-owned enterprises and a robust military-industrial complex blurs the line between the two

The US, meanwhile, has presented details that frame the incident as part of a surveillance effort powered by a fleet of Chinese spy balloons it says have been spotted across five continents over the past several years.