The Chinese spy balloon that flew throughout the U.S. before this calendar year did not accumulate and transmit facts again to Beijing, Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen Pat Ryder claimed Thursday.
“We ended up knowledgeable that it experienced intelligence collection abilities,” Ryder reported, several hours right after reviews saying that the Chinese spy balloon used American products to just take photos and films intended to be despatched back to Beijing.
Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder walks up to the podium at the get started of a push briefing in the Pentagon Briefing Place on Thursday, June 22, 2023 in Washington. (AP Picture/Kevin Wolf)
“It has been our evaluation now that [the balloon] did not accumulate even though it was transiting the United States … And as we said at the time, we also took steps to mitigate the probable initiatives of that balloon,” Ryder reported.
Intelligence agencies have concluded that the spy balloon was employed for spying, not weather-linked difficulties as China had claimed.
The U.S. Air Force produced its first photographs of the Chinese spy craft taken right before it was shot down.
Facts captured by the spy balloon is not thought to have been properly sent back to Beijing. It is unclear why the spy mission seemed to fail, but officials explained intelligence companies applied countermeasures to prevent info selection.
The Chinse spy balloon flew from Alaska to the East Coast, exactly where it was shot down by the military above the Atlantic Ocean on Feb. 4.
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President Biden claimed Saturday that the balloon was “additional uncomfortable that it was intentional” by the communist routine.
Fox News’ Patrick Hauf contributed to this report.
