Tag Archives: spy balloons

Taiwan’s National Defense spots 4 Chinese spy balloons floating directly over the Island

Spy Balloon

Important Takeaways:

  • Chinese Spy Balloons Spotted Over Taiwan Ahead of Critical Elections
  • Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense has reported that four Chinese spy balloons were detected floating over the island nation this week. The first was identified Monday, with three more spotted flying over the island on Tuesday. Chinese spy balloons have previously been detected flying near Taiwan, but this is the first time officials have reported such balloons crossing directly over the island nation.
  • According to ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Sun Li-fang, the balloons appeared to be the kind designed to collect atmospheric data. “As for whether they have other purposes,” he said, the government “is closely monitoring and controlling the situation, taking appropriate measures, and summarizing their flight paths for judgment and analysis.”
  • A similar balloon was found floating over the U.S. in January last year and was eventually shot down. Despite Beijing’s claims that it was merely a weather balloon that had drifted off course, an analysis of the debris by U.S. government agencies found that the balloon carried specialized equipment used to collect photos and videos, as well as other kinds of data.
  • The appearance of the Chinese balloons over Taiwan comes as the country is preparing for a three-way presidential election on January 13, in which both opposition candidates have expressed a desire to take a more friendly approach to China than the current ruling Party.
  • The appearance of the Chinese spy balloons over Taiwan comes barely a week after former U.S. Navy Seal Erik Prince predicted that China will invade Taiwan during the spring of this year.

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China’s new domain ‘near space’ links spy balloon to hypersonic missile program

United_States_Aerial_Objects

Important Takeaways:

  • China defense report links high-altitude spy balloons to hypersonic missile program
  • New Beijing command looks to dominate ‘near-space’ — domain the U.S. says does not exist
  • China’s high-altitude balloon program is linked to the military’s hypersonic missile program and a new command for both systems is prepared to conduct “merciless” attacks in a future conflict with the United States, according to a Chinese defense research report.
  • The report by a group of researchers at the National University of Defense Technology states that the military set up a new command for both hypersonic missiles and the high-altitude balloons — like the suspected surveillance balloon shot down in February off the South Carolina coast by an Air Force jet fighter after traversing much of the continental U.S.
  • The report, “Near Space Operations Command,” made public during a Beijing conference on command and control in October, said the new operations command will direct hypersonic missiles against heavily protected targets, including communications equipment and hubs in the heartland of an adversary.

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