US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken told the head of the office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Wang Yi, that the appearance of a Chinese observation probe in US airspace is a violation of US sovereignty. The day before, a Chinese observation balloon was seen at high altitude over nuclear facilities in Montana.
The Pentagon believes that these Chinese vehicles are reconnaissance. Beijing, on the contrary, claims that the probes are scientific, which are used primarily for meteorological purposes. Despite the announcement by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Blinken has already canceled a planned visit to China, which was supposed to take place on February 5.
This is stated in a statement by US Foreign Minister Ned Price.
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken… held a telephone conversation with Wang Yi, head of the office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, to announce the decision to cancel his trip to the People’s Republic of China due to a covert surveillance Chinese balloon detected in US airspace on American soil, the statement said.
According to Price, the Secretary of State called the appearance of the observation probe over the United States “an irresponsible act and a clear violation of US sovereignty and international law, which undermined the purpose of the trip.”
Recall that the Central Committee of Foreign Affairs of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China is the main body that forms the direction of China’s foreign policy and makes key decisions in this area. The head of the chancellery (office) of this commission has a higher status than the minister of foreign affairs, and is an international adviser to the Chinese leader.
Source: Racurs
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