US military forces in place to retrieve parts of the balloon structure that survive fall into the sea
The balloon was eventually brought down off the coast of South Carolina on Saturday afternoon, local time.
Mr Biden’s opposition Republican critics had sought to portray the president as being weak on the issue as the Chinese balloon crossed the country. The Federal Aviation Administration in the United States on Saturday paused departures and arrivals at airports in Wilmington North Carolina as well as in Myrtle Beach and Charleston in South Carolina. The agency said the move was meant to “support the Department of Defense in a national security effort”.US officials told US reporters the balloon had been shot down within the 12-mile limit of US territorial waters.
The Pentagon rejected that out of hand – as well as China’s contention that it was not being used for surveillance and had only limited navigational ability.
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