The alleged Chinese spy balloon that passed over the United States earlier this year.
Sparking a diplomatic crisis between the two nations, used American-made surveillance gear to spy on citizens, the Wall Street Journal reported in an exclusive.
A probe into the incident carried out by the US found that other than commercially available US gear, the balloon was equipped with more specialised Chinese sensors and other equipment to collect photographs, and other information during its eight-day passage over the US states and some parts of Canadian territory, WSJ said.
The preliminary conclusions from the investigation were drawn after analysing the debris recovered after the balloon was shot down by the US military off the South Carolina coast on February 4. The probe showed that the craft collected photos and videos but didn’t appear to transmit them back to China.
The findings also supported the conclusion that the craft was intended for spying, against China’s claim that it was meant for weather monitoring.
According to the report, US officials stated that they traced purchase orders for certain equipment found on the balloon, probed link between the purchasers and the Chinese government.
Bloomberg reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in China did not provide a response to the request for comment. Additionally, Reuters reported that both the White House and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are also yet responded for comments.
This development follows Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s recent visit to Beijing, marking the highest-ranking visit by an American official to China in five years, as both countries attempt to mend their relations.