On Saturday, US fighter jets successfully shot down a high-altitude balloon that had been identified as a suspected spying device in the Atlantic Ocean. President Joe Biden praised the action as a success, while China has expressed their "strong dissatisfaction and protest" in response.

The US believes the balloon was involved in espionage, a statement the Chinese strongly refuted, claiming it is a civilian research vessel that had been blown off course. China's Foreign Ministry released a statement saying the US had "seriously violated international practice".

However, US officials pushed back on Chinese claims, stating that the balloon was in fact a Chinese surveillance balloon that had purposely entered US airspace for espionage purposes. Intelligence analysts also point out that the balloon was seeking to monitor certain sensitive sites. The officials further noted that a second balloon elsewhere in the Americas had similar technical characteristics.

China has said they will "resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of relevant companies