US balloons flew over Xinjiang, Tibet, says China; warns of counter action

Beijing: China on Wednesday said that US-owned high altitude balloons flew over its Xinjiang and Tibet regions, and it will take action against US entities that undermine Chinese sovereignty as a diplomatic dispute between the two countries escalated.

Earlier this week, China indicated that US balloons had flown over its airspace without permission more than 10 times since May 2022, without giving details of their location.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin has said US balloons made round-the-world flights. “Without the approval of relevant Chinese authorities, it has illegally flown at least 10 times over China’s territorial airspace, including over Xinjiang, Tibet and other provinces,” Wang told a regular daily briefing on Wednesday.

The White House has denied China’s allegations.

The ongoing dispute comes amid the US military’s shooting down off the coast of South Carolina of what it called a Chinese spy balloon suspecting it of espionage over US military bases.

But Beijing clarified that its balloon was a civilian research vessel, and that Washington had overreacted. The US later added six Chinese entities connected to Beijing’s suspected surveillance balloon program to an export blacklist.

“The U.S. has abused force, overreacted, escalated the situation, and used this as a pretext to illegally sanction Chinese companies and institutions,” Wang said on Wednesday.

“China is firmly opposed to this and will take countermeasures against relevant US entities that undermine China’s sovereignty and security in accordance with the law,” Wang said.

Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,
India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.