20230202 中國間諜氣球事件

 

20230202　中國間諜氣球事件

在布林肯訪中之前，媒體出現中國間諜氣球，加上川普時期的3次，已經是第4次了。
中國不否認，承認其為民間氣球。布林肯為之停止訪中（稱為延後）。
此事，北京立即不否認，表示事件為先給布林肯穿小鞋。若布林肯在中國時出現此新聞，美國談判氣勢就弱上一大截。
白宮下令停止訪中（稱為延後），即為看穿北京把戲。
1月28日，美國即已偵察到此枚間諜氣球，2月1日，拜登授權擊落，但選擇恰當時間在媒體露出消息，並讓氣球慢慢飄，橫越全美，意在內宣與醞釀。
果不其然，從國會到民間舉國憤怒。此時又傳出第二枚氣球在中南美洲（Costa Rica）出現，看起來是同一批釋放的兩顆中國間諜氣球。這樣，中南美國家豈能不感同身受？
氣球飄過陸地之後，美國在海上予以擊毀。選擇海上領空（離岸6英里，水深47英尺），是落下的殘骸可能較為完整，也比較好撈。撈起來的殘骸，加上中國承認，就是累積外交相罵本，當然也是情報研究資料。
中國的反應「對美方使用武力襲擊民用無人飛艇表示強烈不滿和抗議」，等到撈起來公布週知，就知如何。但，美國也讓對方知道F-22加上MIM-9X飛彈，可以打下6萬英尺高的物體的能力。
擊落之後，美國國防部長表示「這是美國總統有效回應中華人民共和國侵犯我們的主權。」用語很重！

 

F-22 Safely Shoots Down Chinese Spy Balloon Off South Carolina Coast

President Joe Biden ordered the action on Wednesday, but it was delayed until the balloon was over water off the coast of South Carolina to ensure no Americans on the ground were harmed. 

"The balloon, which was being used by the PRC in an attempt to surveil strategic sites in the continental United States, was brought down above U.S. territorial waters," Austin said.  

The action was taken in coordination and support of the Canadian government. "We thank Canada for its contribution to tracking and analysis of the balloon through [North American Aerospace Defense Command] as it transited North America," Austin said. "Today's deliberate and lawful action demonstrates that President Biden and his national security team will always put the safety and security of the American people first while responding effectively to the PRC's unacceptable violation of our sovereignty," Austin said referring to the Peoples Republic of China.

U.S. officials first detected the balloon and its payload on January 28 when it entered U.S. airspace near the Aleutian Islands. The balloon traversed Alaska, Canada and re-entered U.S. airspace over Idaho. "President Biden asked the military to present options and on Wednesday President Biden gave his authorization to take down the Chinese surveillance balloon as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to us civilians under the balloon's path," said a senior defense official speaking on background. "Military commanders determined that there was undue risk of debris causing harm to civilians while the balloon was overland." 

An F-22 Raptor fighter from the 1st Fighter Wing at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, fired one AIM-9X Sidewinder missile at the balloon.  

The balloon fell approximately six miles off the coast in about 47 feet of water. No one was hurt. 

Long before the shoot down, U.S. officials took steps to protect against the balloon's collection of sensitive information, mitigating its intelligence value to the Chinese. The senior defense official said the recovery of the balloon will enable U.S. analysts to examine sensitive Chinese equipment. "I would also note that while we took all necessary steps to protect against the PRC surveillance balloon's collection of sensitive information, the surveillance balloon's overflight of U.S. territory was of intelligence value to us," the official said. "I can't go into more detail, but we were able to study and scrutinize the balloon and its equipment, which has been valuable." 

The balloon did not pose a military or physical threat. Still its intrusion into American airspace over several days was an unacceptable violation of U.S. sovereignty. The official said Chinese balloons briefly transited the continental United States at least three times during the prior administration. 

While Chinese officials admitted that the balloon was theirs, they said it was a runaway weather balloon. "The PRC has claimed publicly that the high-altitude balloon operating above the United States is a weather balloon that was blown off course. This is false," the official said. "This was a PRC surveillance balloon. This surveillance balloon purposely traversed the United States and Canada, and we are confident it was seeking to monitor sensitive military sites." 

The mission now transitions to one of recovery. There are a number of U.S. Navy and Coast Guard vessels establishing a security perimeter around the area where the balloon came to Earth. They are searching for debris, said a senior military official also speaking on background.  

There is no estimate for how long the recovery mission will take, the military official said, but the fact that it came down in such a shallow area should make recovery "fairly easy". 

The military official gave some detail of the engagement. The F-22 fired the Sidewinder at the balloon from an altitude of 58,000 feet. The balloon at the time was between 60,000 and 65,000 feet.  

F-15 Eagles flying from Barnes Air National Guard Base, Massachusetts, supported the F-22, as did tankers from multiple states including Oregon, Montana, South Carolina and North Carolina. Canadian forces also helped track the overflight of the balloon. 

The Navy has deployed the destroyer USS Oscar Austin, the cruiser USS Philippine Sea and the USS Carter Hall, an amphibious landing ship in support of the effort.