The Chinese spy balloon that floated across the United States managed to collect information from several key United States military installations despite attempts by the Biden administration to prevent it from doing so, according to a media report.
The two present and one former top US officials stated China controlled the Chinese spy balloon to make repeated flights over various areas (sometimes flying figure-eight patterns) and transfer the data to Beijing in real-time, as reported by NBC News.
The officials added that China's intelligence came largely from electronic signals from weapons systems or base personnel.
The three individuals claimed China might have gotten more information from critical areas if the government hadn't moved about possible targets and stopped them from broadcasting or producing signals to hide the balloon's capacity to pick up their electronic signals.
NBC News requested a response from the Defense Department. The Defense Department pointed the news organization to February statements by top officials that the balloon featured "limited additive value" for Chinese intelligence gathering above and beyond what China is likely able to acquire using devices such as satellites "in low earth orbit."
Chinese Spy Balloon Incident Strains US-China Ties
In early February, President Joe Biden ordered the US military to shoot down the Chinese spy balloon, which China says was a meteorological balloon.
The Chinese spy balloon incident sparked the postponement of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's China visit and soured ties between Washington and Beijing, per Reuters.
The US intelligence community created a mechanism last year to follow what it claims to be a fleet of Chinese balloons operated by the Chinese military that is reportedly roaming all over the world, according to CNN.
The FBI is currently analyzing the Chinese spy balloon, but agents have learned more about how it works, including its software algorithms and power, and design.
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