Two U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the military had shot down the object but declined to say whether it resembled the large white Chinese balloon that was shot down earlier this month.
WASHINGTON -The U.S. military shot down on Sunday an octagonal object over Lake Huron near the Canadian border, U.S. officials said, the fourth object downed this month as North American security forces have been on high alert for airborne threats.
This marks the fourth unidentified flying object that has been destroyed over North America this month, straining U.S. relations with China. The first object was a balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina on Feb. 4. On Friday, a second object was shot down over sea ice near Deadhorse, Alaska. And a third object was destroyed over Canada's Yukon on Saturday with investigators still hunting for the wreckage.
That 200-foot-tall balloon - which Americans have accused Beijing of using to spy on the United States - caused an international incident, leading Secretary of State Antony Blinken to call off a planned trip to China only hours before he was set to depart.Twice in 24 hours, U.S. officials closed airspace - only to reopen it swiftly.
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told U.S. broadcaster ABC that U.S. officials think two of the latest objects were smaller balloons than the original one. Speaking to Fox News, House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul said the balloon shot down over the South Carolina coast had been on a mission to get imagery of sensitive American nuclear sites.
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