The United States Department of State did he know that the equipment of the Chinese balloon that a few days ago had been identified in American airspace and shot down “was clearly for intelligence activities and inconsistent with the equipment on board the weather balloons”, something China has maintained so far. This conclusion was reached after the analysis of high-definition images obtained with a U-2 spy plane sent by the Americans while the balloon was still in flight and which would show that it was equipped with antennas and solar panels sufficient to receive communications, and collect and geolocate information.
The images would confirm the hypothesis already spread by the American authorities that the balloon was a military vehicle used for espionage purposes within a Chinese army operation, which in recent years has involved over 40 countries. It is probable that new official communications from the United States will arrive in the next few days, given that operations to recover the remains that fell into the water and to the seabed have been underway since Tuesday.
– Read also: History of the military use of aerostatic balloons