China’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday that the flight of a Chinese “airship” over the United States was due to force majeure, accusing US politicians and the media of using the situation to discredit China.
The ministry said the balloon had already flown in from China and was being used in research missions, including meteorology.
And the Chinese Foreign Ministry stressed that Beijing regrets that the balloon, due to force majeure, incorrectly deviated over the territory of the United States, noting that the balloon seriously changed its course due to bad weather and limited self-control capabilities.
“China will continue to contact the United States to properly explain the force majeure incident,” the ministry said.
