Americans decode 'message' from China through balloon incident
(Baonghean.vn) - China "sent" a balloon into US airspace to show that the US is currently weakening, said Mr. Marco Rubio, a prestigious Republican senator, in an interview with ABC Television.
He said China "knew exactly what they were doing and there was a message behind it." "They knew it would be visible, they knew the US government would have to announce it, they knew people would see it in the sky," said Mr. Rubio, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee. The "message" was intended to show that the US, which "was once a great superpower," was now "empty" and "in decline."
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| Illustration photo. Photo: AP |
Rubio also asked the Pentagon for a "specific" explanation of why the balloon was not shot down sooner and what data it could have collected. Over the weekend, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced that the military, on orders from President Joe Biden, shot down a Chinese-owned balloon that flew into US airspace. According to the Pentagon chief, the device was used to monitor strategic facilities.
In response, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed his visit to China. For its part, China said it does not accept baseless speculation and hype over the balloon incident. Beijing said the incident was a force majeure, the device was a balloon that deviated from its course, and noted that the US's use of military means against China's unmanned civilian balloon was an overreaction. Beijing said it had the full right to take further necessary actions./.
