Today, China offered a subdued rebuttal to Antony Blinken’s decision to cancel a high-stakes trip to Beijing after a Chinese spy Balloon was discovered hovering over US airspace.
What is the Complete Story?
Blinken cancelled the Beijing trip, saying it was not the right time as a high altitude Chinese spy balloon was seen floating around 6000 feet above the Central United States.
In defence, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that the presence of a surveillance balloon in US airspace was completely an accident. It was caused by westerly winds pushing the balloon towards the US.
They said the balloon is none other than a weather research airship made for collecting weather data. The Chinese ministry even accused US media and politicians of taking advantage of the situation.
And the ministry also accused them of discrediting China. During the Beijing visit, Blinken had to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping to have a discussion on issues such as Taiwan, human rights, China’s friendship with Russia, US sanctions targeting Chinese tech companies and the Russia and Ukraine war.
The balloon incident just before the trip to Beijing raises many questions about whether it was an accident or an intentional effort.
The professor at the Institute of International Studies at Shanghai’s Fudan University, Zhao Minghao, made a statement that they didn’t have any intentions of disrupting the process of easing relations with the US as this year is very important for China to revive the economy.
He said the foreign ministry must be feeling the pain as they have already made extensive preparations for the Blinken visit to Beijing.
The Spy Balloon is just a Metaphor for the Fragility of the US-China Relationship
The Chinese spy balloon is a metaphor for the fragility of the US-China relationship for some people, which is only deepening the mistrust between the two countries. The managing director of the Asia Society in New York, Rorry Daniels, said the relationship between the two sides is still delicate after years of built-up tension.
He added both should continue to work towards a meeting. And in this fragile state of the relationship, the US must take some time to get the situation right.
A scholar at the University of Pennsylvania’s Centre for the Study of Contemporary China made a statement that the most important question in this situation is whether the mistake opens up any leverage for the US to negotiate the visit.
Stay tuned with us for further updates!
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