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Everything you need to know about the suspected Chinese spy balloon

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When US military fighter jets shot down a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon over the Atlantic Ocean this weekend, it wasn’t the end of the political episode, but the very beginning.
When US military fighter jets shot down a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon over the Atlantic Ocean this weekend, it wasn’t the end of the political episode, but the very beginning.

Should the balloon have been shot down earlier? Was it able to collect any intelligence? What should the US response be?

These questions and more now loom large over President Joe Biden as he prepares for his State of the Union address Tuesday evening. Republicans have flooded the political airwaves with criticism of what they say was Biden’s delayed response, but Democrats are defending the White House’s approach.

Underpinning these debates is the larger issue of US-China relations.

China said Sunday it “reserves the right” to deal with “similar situations” following the United States’ decision to shoot down its high-altitude balloon.

“The US used force to attack our civilian unmanned airship, which is an obvious overreaction. We express solemn protest against this move by the US side,” China’s Defense Ministry spokesperson Tan Kefei said in a statement on Sunday afternoon local time.

While lawmakers left and right are dismissing China’s explanation of a civilian research vessel blown off course, the agreement in Washington ends there.

Here is everything you need to know.

Tuesday. Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, informed Biden there was a Chinese balloon floating over Montana – and that it appeared to be on a clear path into the continental United States, differentiating it from previous Chinese surveillance craft.

The president appeared inclined at that point to take the balloon down, and asked Milley and other military officials to draw up options and contingencies.

Wednesday. When options were presented to Biden, he directed his military leadership to shoot down the balloon as soon as they viewed it as a viable option, given concerns about risks to people and property on the ground.

“Shoot it down,” Biden told his military advisers, he would later recount to reporters.

But Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Milley told Biden the risks of shooting the balloon down were too high while it was moving over the US, given the chance debris could endanger lives or property on the ground below.

“They said to me, ‘Let’s wait till the safest place to do it,’” Biden later told reporters.

Friday. A plan to shoot down the balloon was once again presented to Biden while he was in Wilmington, Delaware, where he approved the execution plan for Saturday.

Government officials were told Friday night “decisions would be made (Saturday) morning” on when to close down airspace, and FAA officials were told to “be by the phone” early Saturday morning and “ready to roll.”

Saturday.

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