US House votes 419-0 to slam ‘brazen’ Chinese spy balloon

US House votes 419-0 to slam ‘brazen’ Chinese spy balloon

Lawmakers condemned China’s intrusion into their air space as a violation of US sovereignty.

The House of Representatives’ unanimous resolution comes five days after the Chinese spy balloon was shot down over the Atlantic Ocean. (AP pic)
WASHINGTON:
The US House of Representatives on Thursday unanimously backed a resolution condemning the incursion of a Chinese spy balloon into US airspace last week as “a brazen violation of US sovereignty.”

The House voted 419-0 for the resolution, five days after the US Air Force shot down the device over the Atlantic Ocean.

The resolution is non-binding, but is intended to convey that Republicans and President Joe Biden’s fellow Democrats are united in condemning the decision to send the balloon over US territory.

“Americans were rightfully deeply disturbed by this brazen violation of sovereignty by the Chinese Communist Party,” Republican Representative Michael McCaul, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and sponsor of the resolution, said during debate on the measure.

US lawmakers have been outspoken in their criticism of the incident and demands for more information. On Thursday a Senate appropriations sub-committee called Defense Department officials to testify about the balloon, and deputy secretary of state Wendy Sherman was questioned about it at a separate hearing on China.

Biden administration officials also held classified briefings on Thursday for members of the House and Senate.

China’s foreign ministry has said it was a weather balloon that had blown off course and accused the US of overreacting.

The resolution also denounces the Chinese Communist Party’s “efforts to deceive the international community through false claims about its intelligence collection campaigns.”

It adds that it should be US policy to act quickly and decisively to prevent foreign aerial surveillance platforms from violating US airspace and calls on the Biden administration to keep the House informed by providing comprehensive briefings on the incident.

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