Things in the Sky!

What is China up to? That's the question on everyone's mind after the recent major international incident between China and the United States. A senior military official said a balloon was seen on January 28, on the northern side of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. The balloon was about 18 kilometers high. It followed a flight path over Canada and then over Idaho in the United States. It arrived in Montana on February 1st and when flights were banned at the Billings airport, people looked up in the sky and caught sight of the balloon.

President Biden first heard about the balloon on January 31 and asked a top general to review military options.

National and international diplomatic fallout quickly followed. In the United States, there was a difference of opinion about what should be done. Republicans took the opportunity to criticize Biden for his inaction, saying he should have destroyed the balloon as soon as he learned about it. But Biden said he did just that – with one condition – don't take the risk that anyone would die as a result. Therefore, it was not destroyed until it was over the sea – which happened on February 4, over the Atlantic ocean.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced its strong displeasure and objection over Washington's decision to shoot down the balloon, claiming it was a Chinese civilian aircraft that had accidentally entered the United States. "China will firmly protect the legitimate rights of the enterprise in question, and reserves the right to respond later," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The United States did not believe it was a civilian aircraft, but the Pentagon determined it was a Chinese surveillance device, and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken postponed his trip to China as a result. It is strange that this (all) happened before the Secretary's trip, when his aim was to restore good relations with China. That's not the kind of thing that would foster good relations between them, and we have to wonder if the Chinese President, Xi Jinpeng, knew that that balloon would be violating US airspace at the same time as Secretary Blinken's visit (was scheduled to occur) .

Reconciliation will now be difficult, with China is claiming thing and the United States another, regarding the balloon. It is vital for the two superpowers to keep their distance for a while, before making another attempt to restore good relations.

UFOs?

It may be a coincidence but it is worrying that three more aircraft have entered the airspace over North America since then! After what had happened to the balloon, they were shot down without delay. The authorities said nothing about them except that they were not as sophisticated as the balloon. Oddlly enough, a couple of them were not balloons, apparently, but they were not sure about the propulsion system used. As a result, there were whispers that they were UFOs. Asked at a news conference whether an extraterrestrial origin was out of the question, Glen D. VanHerck, commander of the Air Force Northern Command, said, "I can't rule anything out at this point." But in other interviews, US national security officials said it was not an extraterrestrial spacecraft. No one, said one senior official, thinks these things are other than just products made here on Earth.

Parting Words

Up until February 4, 2023, no aircraft had been brought to the ground over North America. Since then, four aircraft have been brought to the ground! This raises many questions about what is going on, and who is behind this attack?

Undoubtedly, the first aircraft - the balloon - belongs to China. We will know more about the balloon before long, after the United States has examined the pieces they recovered from the sea. China was probably spying on the United States with that balloon. If so, they won’t be in a hurry back!

As for the other aircraft, the US government remains silent as of this writing. The government will be pressured to issue a statement soon enough, and that will be very interesting to see. I hope it's not alien spaceships!

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