China says it reserves right to respond to downing of surveillance balloon
The balloon's flight over the U.S. added tension to the U.S.-China relationship.
A massive Chinese surveillance balloon that moved across the continental U.S. this week has been shot down.
The Pentagon has confirmed the balloon was being used for surveillance, disputing China's claim that it was a civilian aircraft used for meteorological purposes. Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said the balloon didn't pose a physical or military threat, and once it was detected, the U.S. took steps to protect against foreign intelligence collection of sensitive information.
The FBI is expected to take custody of any recovered components of the balloon and ship them to its lab in Quantico, Virginia, for analysis and intelligence gathering, a senior government official told ABC News.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a planned trip to China as the balloon's presence over the continental U.S. added new tension to the U.S.-China relationship. Blinken called the balloon a "clear violation" of U.S. sovereignty and international law.
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Blinken speaks with Chinese counterpart
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke on Friday with Wang Yi, the former foreign minister who has recently been elevated as China's highest ranking foreign affairs official within the party.
Xinhua News Agency posted a very brief readout of Blinken's phone call to his direct counterpart Wang Yi which appears to have taken place before Blinken postponed his trip to China.
Wang Yi said that China is a responsible country and has always strictly abided by international law and the two sides need to maintain their determination, communicate and avoid misjudgment.
The readout does not address the postponement of Blinken's trip because the Chinese government maintains that the trip was never officially announced.
"As a matter of fact, neither China nor the U.S. has announced any visits,” China said previously when addressing Blinken’s postponed trip. “It is the U.S.'s own business to release relevant information, and we respect that.”
China slams those who 'took advantage of the issue'
The Chinese Foreign Ministry posted a new statement in a form of a Q&A on their website early Saturday and slammed those taking advantage of the massive surveillance balloon.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed his upcoming trip to China, but the ministry claimed the visit had never been announced.
"As a matter of fact, neither China nor the US has announced any visits. It is the US's own business to release relevant information, and we respect that," the statement read.
They also reiterated their denial that the surveillance balloon was being used to spy on the U.S., insisting that China has always abided by international law and that the balloon deviated from its scheduled route.
"This was completely an accident caused by force majeure, and the facts are very clear," the statement continued.
The United States, elected officials and the media were also accused by the ministry of taking advantage of the incident.
"Some politicians and media in the United States took advantage of the issue to attack and discredit China. China firmly opposes it," the statement read.
-ABC News' Karson Yiu and Britt Clennett
City of Billings denies claims of ‘massive explosion’
The city of Billings, Montana, is aware of a video being shared on social media Friday that claimed an explosion over the city but officials said that there have not been any incidents.
“We are aware of the video shared on Twitter and claims of a “massive explosion” over Billings. However, our PD, Fire & airport have NOT been called to any incidents related to this video and there haven’t been any plane crashes picked up on radar #ChineseSpyBalloon #spyballoon,” the tweet read.
Second Chinese surveillance balloon flying over South America: US
The Pentagon is now confirming that there is a second Chinese surveillance balloon flying over South America. There were reports earlier Friday of a balloon flying over Colombia and Venezuela, but there was no information until now.
“We are seeing reports of a balloon transiting Latin America. We now assess it is another Chinese surveillance balloon,” Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement Friday.
-ABC News' Luis Martinez
Pentagon confirms shooting down balloon was an 'option'
Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder confirmed Friday that shooting down the balloon was considered.
"In terms of the discussions about whether or not to shoot down this balloon, that was an option. That was something that was taken into consideration," Ryder said. "Again, because we assessed that currently it does not pose a physical or military risk to people on the ground, for now we are continuing to monitor and review options."
Ryder said because of the "size" of the balloon, "any potential debris field would be significant and potential cause civilian injuries or deaths or significant property damage."
Ryder was asked multiple times if the U.S. will shoot down the balloon once it's over a body of water.
"We are monitoring the situation closely, but beyond that I will not have any additional information," he said.
When asked how close President Joe Biden was to ordering a shootdown of the balloon, Ryder said he "will not get into internal discussions with the White House."