February 2 2023
https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/politics/us-tracking-china-spy-balloon/index..html

.... The US believes Chinese spy satellites
in low Earth orbit are capable of offering
similar or better intelligence, limiting the
value of whatever Beijing can glean from
the high-altitude balloon, which is the size
of 3 buses, according to another defense
official.

.... the balloon’s presence in the US comes
at a sensitive moment with Secretary of
State Antony Blinken expected to travel to
Beijing in the coming days, a significant trip
meant to follow up on President Joe Biden’s
meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping
last year.

.... Tensions have flared in recent years over
the self-governing island of Taiwan, China’s
human rights record and its military activities
in the South China Sea, among a host of other
issues.

Biden was briefed & took advice not to shoot
balloon down

~~~

---
February 2 2023

What to make of the US military’s movements in
the Pacific & a general’s wild warning about war
https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/politics/air-force-china-war-2025-what-matters/index.html
---

Multiple developments in recent weeks reinforce
the US military’s new hyperfocus on China:

o The US is beefing up its presence in the Pacific
with a new military base – its first in 70 years –
on the island of Guam, a US territory.

o There is a new agreement between the US &
Japan that will redesignate US Marines stationed
on Japan, allowing them to fire anti-ship missiles.

o Plus, the US military will gain expanded access
to bases in the Philippines, a newly announced
deal that drew US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin
to that country this week.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/01/asia/us-philippines-base-access-agreement-intl-hnk-ml/index.html

The newly announced deal will give the US access
to 4 more locations under an Enhanced Defense
Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) dating to 2014,
allowing the US to rotate troops to a total of 9
bases throughout the Philippines.

.... Top US officials such as Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley have said US intelligence
suggests China’s goal is to be able to strengthen
its military capabilities to levels required to poten-
tially attack & seize Taiwan by 2027, something
which analysts believe it does not possess at
present.

.... a memo from a top commander in the US Air
Force, Gen. Michael Minihan, that warns subordin-
ates his “gut” tells him to be ready for war with
China – & not just in theory, but in 2 years.

--- --- ---

Follow-up:

---
February 4 2023

Biden says U.S. is 'gonna take care'
of suspected Chinese spy balloon
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/biden-chinese-surveillance-balloon-re-gonna-take-care-rcna69155
---

President Joe Biden on Saturday briefly
spoke about the suspected Chinese spy
balloon that has been hovering over the
U.S. over the past few days.

Asked by a reporter if the U.S. will shoot
down the balloon as he deplaned Air Force
One, Biden said, “We’re gonna take care of
it." It was the first time Biden had spoken
on camera about the balloon & he did not
say how his administration plans to take
care of it.

.... the balloon was flying at an altitude of
60,000 feet — above civilian and military
aviation — & moving eastward across the
continental U.S.

China said Friday that the balloon was a
“civilian airship” used for weather research
that had been blown off course.

.... Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder said
“We know that it’s a surveillance balloon.”

On Thursday, February 2, 2023 at 9:51:31 PM UTC-6, observer wrote:

..> February 2 2023
..> https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/politics/us-tracking-china-spy-balloon/index.html
..>
..> ... The US believes Chinese spy satellites
..> in low Earth orbit are capable of offering
..> similar or better intelligence, limiting the
..> value of whatever Beijing can glean from
..> the high-altitude balloon, which is the size
..> of 3 buses, according to another defense
..> official.
..>
..> ... the balloon’s presence in the US comes
..> at a sensitive moment with Secretary of
..> State Antony Blinken expected to travel to
..> Beijing in the coming days, a significant trip
..> meant to follow up on President Joe Biden’s
..> meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping
..> last year.
..>
..> ... Tensions have flared in recent years over
..> the self-governing island of Taiwan, China’s
..> human rights record and its military activities
..> in the South China Sea, among a host of other
..> issues.
..>
..> Biden was briefed & took advice not to shoot
..> balloon down
..>
..> ~~~
..>
..> ---
..> February 2 2023
..>
..> What to make of the US military’s movements in
..> the Pacific & a general’s wild warning about war
..> https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/politics/air-force-china-war-2025-what-matters/index.html
..> ---
..>
..> Multiple developments in recent weeks reinforce
..> the US military’s new hyperfocus on China:
..>
..> o The US is beefing up its presence in the Pacific
..> with a new military base – its first in 70 years –
..> on the island of Guam, a US territory.
..>
..> o There is a new agreement between the US &
..> Japan that will redesignate US Marines stationed
..> on Japan, allowing them to fire anti-ship missiles.
..>
..> o Plus, the US military will gain expanded access
..> to bases in the Philippines, a newly announced
..> deal that drew US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin
..> to that country this week.
..> https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/01/asia/us-philippines-base-access-agreement-intl-hnk-ml/index.html
..>
..> The newly announced deal will give the US access
..> to 4 more locations under an Enhanced Defense
..> Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) dating to 2014,
..> allowing the US to rotate troops to a total of 9
..> bases throughout the Philippines.
..>
..> ... Top US officials such as Chairman of the Joint
..> Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley have said US intelligence
..> suggests China’s goal is to be able to strengthen
..> its military capabilities to levels required to poten-
..> tially attack & seize Taiwan by 2027, something
..> which analysts believe it does not possess at
..> present.
..>
..> ... a memo from a top commander in the US Air
..> Force, Gen. Michael Minihan, that warns subordin-
..> ates his “gut” tells him to be ready for war with
..> China – & not just in theory, but in 2 years.
..>
..> *--- --- ---*

Follow-up 2:

---
Updated 3:56 PM EST,
Saturday February 4, 2023

US fighter jets shoot down
Chinese spy balloon off East Coast
https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/04/politics/china-spy-balloon-us-latest/index.html
---

US military fighter jets shot down the suspected
Chinese surveillance balloon over the Atlantic
Ocean off the Eastern Seaboard of the United
States, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed
Saturday.

.... President Joe Biden approved the downing of
the balloon, Austin said in a statement, which a
US official previously told CNN was a plan that
was presented and supported by US military lead-
ers.

Recovery efforts began shortly after the balloon
was downed, the same official added.

Speaking to reporters in Hagerstown, Maryland,
shortly after the balloon was shot down, Biden
reiterated that he first approved the plan to do
so earlier this week but waited to carry out the
operation until the balloon was safely over water.

On Saturday, February 4, 2023 at 12:56:13 PM UTC-6, observer wrote:

..> Follow-up:
..>
..> ---
..> February 4 2023
..>
..> Biden says U.S. is 'gonna take care'
..> of suspected Chinese spy balloon
..> https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/biden-chinese-surveillance-balloon-re-gonna-take-care-rcna69155
..> ---
..>
..> President Joe Biden on Saturday briefly
..> spoke about the suspected Chinese spy
..> balloon that has been hovering over the
..> U.S. over the past few days.
..>
..> Asked by a reporter if the U.S. will shoot
..> down the balloon as he deplaned Air Force
..> One, Biden said, “We’re gonna take care of
..> it." It was the first time Biden had spoken
..> on camera about the balloon & he did not
..> say how his administration plans to take
..> care of it.
..>
..> ... the balloon was flying at an altitude of
..> 60,000 feet — above civilian and military
..> aviation — & moving eastward across the
..> continental U.S.
..>
..> China said Friday that the balloon was a
..> “civilian airship” used for weather research
..> that had been blown off course.
..>
..> ... Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder said
..> “We know that it’s a surveillance balloon.”
> On Thursday, February 2, 2023 at 9:51:31 PM UTC-6, observer wrote:
/> .> February 2 2023
/> .> https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/politics/us-tracking-china-spy-balloon/index.html
/> .>
/> .> ... The US believes Chinese spy satellites
/> .> in low Earth orbit are capable of offering
/> .> similar or better intelligence, limiting the
/> .> value of whatever Beijing can glean from
/> .> the high-altitude balloon, which is the size
/> .> of 3 buses, according to another defense
/> .> official.
/> .>
/> .> ... the balloon’s presence in the US comes
/> .> at a sensitive moment with Secretary of
/> .> State Antony Blinken expected to travel to
/> .> Beijing in the coming days, a significant trip
/> .> meant to follow up on President Joe Biden’s
/> .> meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping
/> .> last year.
/> .>
/> .> ... Tensions have flared in recent years over
/> .> the self-governing island of Taiwan, China’s
/> .> human rights record and its military activities
/> .> in the South China Sea, among a host of other
/> .> issues.
/> .>
/> .> Biden was briefed & took advice not to shoot
/> .> balloon down
/> .>
/> .> ~~~
/> .>
/> .> ---
/> .> February 2 2023
/> .>
/> .> What to make of the US military’s movements in
/> .> the Pacific & a general’s wild warning about war
/> .> https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/02/politics/air-force-china-war-2025-what-matters/index.html
/> .> ---
/> .>
/> .> Multiple developments in recent weeks reinforce
/> .> the US military’s new hyperfocus on China:
/> .>
/> .> o The US is beefing up its presence in the Pacific
/> .> with a new military base – its first in 70 years –
/> .> on the island of Guam, a US territory.
/> .>
/> .> o There is a new agreement between the US &
/> .> Japan that will redesignate US Marines stationed
/> .> on Japan, allowing them to fire anti-ship missiles.
/> .>
/> .> o Plus, the US military will gain expanded access
/> .> to bases in the Philippines, a newly announced
/> .> deal that drew US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin
/> .> to that country this week.
/> .> https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/01/asia/us-philippines-base-access-agreement-intl-hnk-ml/index.html
/> .>
/> .> The newly announced deal will give the US access
/> .> to 4 more locations under an Enhanced Defense
/> .> Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) dating to 2014,
/> .> allowing the US to rotate troops to a total of 9
/> .> bases throughout the Philippines.
/> .>
/> .> ... Top US officials such as Chairman of the Joint
/> .> Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley have said US intelligence
/> .> suggests China’s goal is to be able to strengthen
/> .> its military capabilities to levels required to poten-
/> .> tially attack & seize Taiwan by 2027, something
/> .> which analysts believe it does not possess at
/> .> present.
/> .>
/> .> ... a memo from a top commander in the US Air
/> .> Force, Gen. Michael Minihan, that warns subordin-
/> .> ates his “gut” tells him to be ready for war with
/> .> China – & not just in theory, but in 2 years.
/> .>
/> .> \*---~---~---*/

February 10 2023

Biden says shoot down of ‘high-altitude
object’ over Alaska was a ‘success’
https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/10/politics/biden-alaska-military-down/index.html

The incident marked the 2nd time American
fighter jets have taken down an object flying
over US airspace in a little less than a week
after a suspected Chinese spy balloon was
shot down off the coast of South Carolina
last Saturday.

.... the Defense Department had no details about
the object’s “capabilities, purpose or origin.” He
added the object posed a reasonable threat to
the safety of civilian flight, noting that “the ob-
ject was about the size of a small car ... The US
has not attributed the 2nd flying object to any
country or entity.

.... Since news broke last week about the Chinese
balloon that was floating over US airspace, new
details have emerged about what’s now under-
stood to be a global surveillance operation by
China’s military, the People’s Liberation Army.

On Thursday, officials revealed that they believe
the spy balloons the US has discovered are part
of a large fleet that is conducting surveillance
operations globally. The US has traced the bal-
loons to 40 countries across five continents.

The US has developed a method to track China’s
spy balloon fleet within the last year ... .

~~~

Link to previous posts in this thread:
https://groups.google.com/g/alt.sports.football.pro.dallas-cowboys/c/5ysdAReqOhE/m/YSOdw7O3AgAJ

--- --- ---

Another follow-up:

---
February 13 2023

The latest on the unidentified objects
shot down over North America
https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/unidentified-objects-us-airspace-white-house-02-13-2023/index.html
---

o A US F-16 fighter jet shot down another
... airborne object over Lake Huron on Sunday
... at the direction of President Joe Biden, the
... Pentagon said. The object wasn't assessed
... to be a military threat, but was a flight hazard,
... according to the Pentagon.

o The operation marked the third day in a row
... that an unidentified object was shot down over
... North American airspace. An unidentified object
... was shot down over northern Canada Saturday
... and one was was shot down in Alaska airspace
... Friday.

o The trio of incidents came just days after the US
... shot down a suspected Chinese surveillance bal-
... loon that crossed the country.

---
February 13 2023

China, UK and US are all boosting their spy balloon
programs

Military interest in balloon surveillance had been
increasing even before a Chinese-launched balloon
wandered across the continental US
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2358944-china-uk-and-us-are-all-boosting-their-spy-balloon-programs
---

Surveillance balloons are having a moment – even
beyond the recent Chinese spy balloon fiasco.

The US and UK militaries are increasingly funding
projects to build high-tech surveillance balloons
that operate at nearly 20 kilometres (over 12 miles)
up in the air.

On Friday, February 10, 2023 at 5:04:01 PM UTC-6, observer wrote:

..> February 10 2023
..>
..> Biden says shoot down of ‘high-altitude
..> object’ over Alaska was a ‘success’
..> https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/10/politics/biden-alaska-military-down/index..html
..>
..> The incident marked the 2nd time American
..> fighter jets have taken down an object flying
..> over US airspace in a little less than a week
..> after a suspected Chinese spy balloon was
..> shot down off the coast of South Carolina
..> last Saturday.
..>
..> ... the Defense Department had no details about
..> the object’s “capabilities, purpose or origin.” He
..> added the object posed a reasonable threat to
..> the safety of civilian flight, noting that “the ob-
..> ject was about the size of a small car ... The US
..> has not attributed the 2nd flying object to any
..> country or entity.
..>
..> ... Since news broke last week about the Chinese
..> balloon that was floating over US airspace, new
..> details have emerged about what’s now under-
..> stood to be a global surveillance operation by
..> China’s military, the People’s Liberation Army.
..>
..> On Thursday, officials revealed that they believe
..> the spy balloons the US has discovered are part
..> of a large fleet that is conducting surveillance
..> operations globally. The US has traced the bal-
..> loons to 40 countries across five continents.
..>
..> The US has developed a method to track China’s
..> spy balloon fleet within the last year ... .
..>
..> ~~~
..>
..> Link to previous posts in this thread:
..> https://groups.google.com/g/alt.sports.football.pro.dallas-cowboys/c/5ysdAReqOhE/m/YSOdw7O3AgAJ
..>
..> *--- --- ---*