Washington on Thursday said that a suspected Chinese spy balloon spotted hovering over the US last week was part of a broader Beijing military surveillance programme targeting more than 40 countries.
State Department spokesman Ned Price said the years-long programme spanned five continents.
"This is a programme that not only threatened and violated our sovereignty but the sovereignty of dozens of countries," Mr Price said.
He did not detail which countries other than the US came under surveillance, or how Washington knews China entered their airspaces.
A senior State Department official earlier told Reuters that Washington alleged the maker of the balloon has a “direct relationship” with the People's Liberation Army.
Mr Price said the US would explore actions it could take against entities linked to the PLA.
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The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the US coast, as seen from South Carolina. Reuters -
President Joe Biden congratulated fighter pilots for taking down the suspected spy balloon. AFP -
The balloon seen from Holden Beach. Reuters -
Spectators watch from the coast. Reuters -
A jet flies by the balloon. Reuters -
Another spectator watches after the balloon was shot down. Reuters -
The suspected Chinese spy balloon over Billings, Montana. AFP
Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the incident was another sign of China's attempts to reshape the international order.
“The PRC is the only competitor with the intent and means to reshape the international order,” she said at the hearing, referring to China as the People's Republic of China.
The incident provided a rare moment of bipartisan outrage among US politicians.
“As an Alaskan, I am so angry,” Lisa Murkowski said during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing.
Committee Chairman John Tester said the incident was a “sober reminder” of the divisiveness in US politics, arguing that the balloon's entry requires a united response.
“Make no mistake about it. What China did last week was completely unacceptable and a real threat to American sovereignty,” he said.
The House of Representatives followed through on Mr Tester's hopes for a united response by passing a resolution condemning the “brazen violation of United States sovereignty” in a unanimous vote.
Both Democratic and Republican senators expressed anger that the balloon was shot down off the South Carolina coast a week after passing through Alaska.
“The fact of the matter is, Alaska is the first line of defence for America,” Ms Murkowski said.
Mr Tester, a US Senator from Montana, added: “The truth is, is I got a problem with a Chinese balloon flying over my state, much less the rest of the country.
Defence officials defended their timing, arguing that shooting it down over Alaska would have seriously complicated recovery efforts because of water depths off its coast and because of freezing temperatures.
The Navy and Coastguard are still recovering debris from the balloon, which was more than 60m wide and weighed more than 900 kilograms.
Lt Gen Douglas Sims said collecting the remnants of the balloon would take “days to weeks”.
China claims that the aircraft was a civilian balloon used for weather research and charted off course, a claim the US rejects out of hand.
“This was not a harmless weather balloon, somehow blown wildly off course, as the Chinese have claimed. This was a serious and blatant attempt by the Chinese to collect valuable data,” Gen Sims said.
The incident was the latest to escalate tensions between Washington and Beijing, prompting Secretary of State Antony Blinken to postpone his long-planned trip to China.
Officials in Washington and Beijing had also confirmed that a US request for Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin to speak to his Chinese counterpart were rebuffed.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she still hopes to visit China, without providing further details.
