Secretary of State Antony Blinken is postponing a trip to Beijing after the Pentagon detected a Chinese “high altitude surveillance balloon” hovering over the nation’s west, with an official describing the intrusion as a “clear violation” of sovereignty.
“After consultations with our interagency partners as well as with Congress, we have concluded that the conditions are not right at this moment for Secretary Blinken to travel to China,” a senior State Department official told reporters on Feb. 3.
“We have noted the PRC [People’s Republic of China] statement of regret, but the presence of this balloon in our airspace is a clear violation of our sovereignty as well as international law, and it is unacceptable that this has occurred,” the official said….