The United States has uncovered a large Chinese fleet of surveillance balloons just days after shooting down one in its disputed waters off the South Carolina coast. According to anonymous defense and intelligence officials, the sophisticated spy balloons have operated for several years, collecting data on strategic targets in countries across Asia. The US has briefed almost 150 foreign diplomats in Washington and Beijing to explain the reasoning behind the shooting, presenting evidence that the balloon was a military device, not a civilian weather balloon as China had claimed.

The disclosed information has drawn significant attention, not only to the capabilities of the Chinese military, but to the heightened regional tensions between Asia's major powers. As US and regional allies have pushed back against Chinese aggression, they have faced a perplexing challenge of a low-tech balloon being used for strategic intelligence-gathering. The United States has insinuated that Chinese secretiveness about the balloon is highly suspicious.