Author: DataFloren

The Pentagon said Thursday it was tracking a Chinese spy balloon flying high over the United States, reviving tensions between the two countries just days ahead of a rare visit to Beijing by the top US diplomat.

At President Joe Biden‘s request, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and top military officials considered shooting the balloon down but decided doing so would endanger too many people on the ground, a senior defense official told reporters Thursday.

“Clearly, the intent of this balloon is for surveillance,” the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.

The official added that the balloon had flown over the northwest United States, where there are sensitive airbases and strategic nuclear missiles in underground silos, but that the Pentagon did not believe it constituted a particularly dangerous intelligence threat.

“We assess that this balloon has limited additive value from an intelligence collection perspective,” the official said.

The discovery of the aircraft comes just days before an expected visit to China by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, with managing heightened tensions between the two powers at the top of the agenda.

Blinken’s visit to Beijing, which follows a meeting last November between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit, will be the first trip to the Asian country by the United States’ top diplomat since 2018.

In addition to ongoing disputes over trade and intellectual property, relations between the two countries have frayed particularly over democratically-governed Taiwan, which China has pledged to reunite with the mainland, by force if necessary.

The United States has been selling arms to Taiwan to defend itself, and Biden has said Washington would help protect Taiwan if China attacked.

The defense official said that the balloon entered US airspace “a couple days ago,” but that American intelligence had been tracking it well before that.

Austin, who was in the Philippines, held discussions Wednesday with top Pentagon officials after Biden asked about options for dealing with the balloon.

Fighter jets were flown to examine it while it was above Montana as discussions took place.

‘Seriousness’ of Issue

But the Pentagon decision was “not to take kinetic action due to the risk to safety and security of people on the ground from the possible debris field,” the official said.

Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder confirmed the balloon was still being tracked over US airspace.

“The balloon is currently traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic. It does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground,” Ryder said in a statement.

China has sent surveillance balloons over the United States in the past.

However, this one has lingered in US airspace much longer, the senior defense official said.

“We are taking steps nevertheless to protect against foreign intelligence collection of sensitive information,” the official said.

Austin was in the Philippines this week to strengthen US defense cooperation, including gaining wider access for Pentagon forces at Philippine military bases, in a move that highlights the US view of China as a threat to East Asia.

Wheels up in the Philippines. I’m proud of the productive discussions with our friends & partners in the ROK & Philippines. This trip reaffirms our deep commitment to work in concert with our allies in support of preserving a #freeandopenpacific. pic.twitter.com/t8wBVU39Z6

— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) February 2, 2023

The defense official said “the seriousness of the issue” with the balloon had been raised with Beijing officials.

“We have made clear we will do whatever is necessary to protect our people in our own land.”

Tensions over Taiwan reached a furor last year when Nancy Pelosi, then-speaker of the US House of Representatives, chose to visit the island.

After Republicans gained control of the chamber in January, questions have been raised over whether her successor will make a similar trip.

“China’s brazen disregard for U.S. sovereignty is a destabilizing action that must be addressed, and President Biden cannot be silent,” current Speaker Kevin McCarthy tweeted Thursday evening.

The post Pentagon Tracking Chinese Spy Balloon Over US appeared first on The Defense Post.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command is tracking a high-altitude Chinese surveillance balloon floating over the U.S., the Pentagon confirmed Thursday, but there are no plans to shoot it down.

The balloon is floating above commercial air traffic and doesn’t present a threat to anything on the ground currently, Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters.

“Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years,” Ryder said. “Once the balloon was detected, the U.S. government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.

A senior defense official declined to say how long the government had been tracking the balloon, and declined to elaborate on previous known instances of spy balloons floating over the U.S., saying only that the government is confident the balloon belongs to China and that it has lingered over U.S. air space for a longer period of time than previous balloons.

‘Dangerously’ close: Video shows Chinese jet buzzing US spy plane

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Army Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and Air Force Gen. Glen VanHerck, the head of Northern Command, advised President Biden on Wednesday not to shoot the balloon down, over concerns that debris could cause casualties on the ground.

“Currently, we assess that this balloon has limited added value from an intelligence collection perspective, but we are taking steps, nevertheless, to protect against foreign intelligence collection of sensitive information,” the official said. “We’re also tracking what abilities that could have in gaining insight and continue to monitor the balloon as it is over the continental United States.”

As the balloon drifted over Montana, it prompted the shutdown of the Billings airport on Wednesday and the alert of Air Force F-22 fighters as part of a possible plan to shoot it down over a more sparsely populated part of the state.

“So, we wanted to make sure we were coordinating with civil authorities to empty out the airspace around that central area but, even with those protective measures taken, it was the judgment of our military commanders that it didn’t drive the risk down low enough, so we didn’t take the shot,” the official said.

Montana is home to one of three U.S. bases operating nuclear fields, but the official said it’s unlikely the balloon could see anything more than orbiting Chinese satellites are already able to see.

“But out of an abundance of caution, we have taken additional mitigation steps that I’m not going to go into … but we know exactly where this balloon is, exactly what it is passing over,” the official said. “We are taking steps to be extra vigilant so that we can mitigate any foreign intelligence risk.”

The U.S. has reached out to Chinese officials through diplomatic channels, the official added.

“We have communicated to them the seriousness with which we take this issue, but beyond that, I’m not going to go into the content of the message, but we have made clear we will do whatever is necessary to protect our people and our homeland,” he said.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Defense is launching the latest 5G competition with millions of dollars on the table, a move it anticipates will shape the rollout of communication upgrades at military bases.

The “2023 5G Challenge: Advanced Interoperability” was announced Feb. 2 in collaboration with Department of Commerce, and comes a little less than one year after a similar contest.

Participants who prove they can help accelerate the adoption of secure networks, swappable and compatible parts, and what the competition dubbed “true plug-and-play 5G interoperability” are eligible to win up to $7 million in cash or prizes including lab time.

Applications are due March 1. The competition is expected to last two years.

Fifth-generation wireless technology promises exponentially faster speeds and the ability to accommodate more and more-advanced devices — a windfall for defense, logistics, business, health care and more.

Pentagon tester gives thumbs up to US Army electronic warfare planner

The technology also has its challenges, though: additional pathways for digital intrusions, pricey infrastructure and sluggish uptake, among them. Amanda Toman, a 5G leader at the Pentagon, previously said the sector is “too critical” to “relinquish to countries whose products and technologies are not aligned with our standards of privacy and security.”

“The department is committed to supporting innovation efforts that accelerate the domestic development of 5G and future-G technologies,” Toman said in a statement in April. “We will continue our support of all necessary efforts to unleash innovation while developing secure 5G supply chains.”

The Defense Department secured approximately $338 million for 5G and microelectronics in fiscal 2022. It sought another $250 million for fiscal 2023, which began Oct. 1.

Defense industry players have heeded the department’s call on 5G.

Northrop Grumman and AT&T in January said they successfully relayed intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data and video using 5G technologies, a critical step toward advanced networking on the battlefield. In September, Lockheed Martin and Verizon said they were able to securely share and analyze real-time data and other intel captured by a swarm of drones via fifth-generation wireless networks, both private and public. And Viasat in June said it would experiment with 5G as a means to connect Marines and support what are known as expeditionary advanced base operations.

The programme’s next phase will see the Airbus VTOL drone operating from a French Navy frigate.

WARSAW, Poland — Ukraine plans to spend about 20 billion hryvnia (U.S. $540 million) on new drones this year, according to the country’s defense minister.

The UAVs are meant to support the Ukrainian military as it continues to combat Russia’s invasion.

“In 2023, we are increasing the purchases of UAVs for the Ukrainian Armed Forces,” Oleksii Reznikov said in a Facebook post. “This is just the beginning. After all, this is not only about the needs of aerial reconnaissance.”

The official said that, owing to the forthcoming acquisitions, the Ukrainian military will strengthen its combat drone capacities. Ukraine will use other new UAVs for surveillance, to support to artillery units and in other missions, Reznikov added.

To date, Ukraine has ordered drones for its armed forces from 16 local manufacturers, the minister said. Kyiv also continues to buy foreign-made UAVs, with a recent contract for 105 Vector reconnaissance drones signed with German manufacturer Quantum-Systems.

“The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has placed a second batch order of Vector systems, following an earlier order of 33 UAS of the same model in August 2022,” the company said in a statement. “Vector has been extensively used and intensively tested on the Ukrainian battlefield, where it has proven to be an asset for military intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations. Its robust and rugged design makes it well-suited for operation in harsh environments and extreme weather conditions.”

The German business also announced the opening of a training and support facility in Ukraine, which is to provide services to drone operators and serve as the local hub for spare parts and repair services.

The value of the latest contract, which is funded by the German government, was not disclosed.