On this picture launched by the U.S. Navy, sailors assigned to Assault Craft Unit 4 put together materials recovered off the coast of Myrtle Seaside, S.C., within the Atlantic Ocean from the capturing down of a Chinese language high-altitude balloon, for transport to the FBI, at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Virginia Seaside, Va., on Feb. 10.

Ryan Seelbach/U.S. Navy/by way of AP

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Ryan Seelbach/U.S. Navy/by way of AP

On this picture launched by the U.S. Navy, sailors assigned to Assault Craft Unit 4 put together materials recovered off the coast of Myrtle Seaside, S.C., within the Atlantic Ocean from the capturing down of a Chinese language high-altitude balloon, for transport to the FBI, at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Virginia Seaside, Va., on Feb. 10.

Ryan Seelbach/U.S. Navy/by way of AP

A commerce conflict, semiconductors, human rights: lately, the U.S.-China relationship has been rocked by successive geopolitical crises which have strained the dynamic between two of the world’s strongest international locations.

Now a balloon is threatening to derail any risk of a diplomatic détente, with Beijing additionally accusing the U.S. of sending balloons to China.

Each the U.S. and China have traded fiery allegations of intensive aerial surveillance packages and injecting a brand new supply of mistrust and animosity between the 2 international locations.

The balloon’s look earlier this month additionally prompted the U.S. to shoot down different “unidentified objects” within the sky, and sparked a recent wave of criticism in Washington, with Republicans accusing President Joe Biden of not appearing shortly sufficient or offering sufficient transparency.

Here is a have a look at what’s occurred to this point.

Feb. 2: A senior U.S. protection official tells reporters that the U.S. is monitoring a flying object and has “very excessive confidence” that the item is a Chinese language high-altitude balloon and is flying over delicate websites to gather data.

Home strain instantly begins to construct. Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio tweets the incident is “alarming however not stunning.”

Feb. 3: In a uncommon expression of contrition, China says it “regrets the unintended entry of the airship into U.S. airspace.” It insists the balloon was not there to spy on U.S. navy websites, however was a civilian airship despatched up for analysis functions and had by chance drifted over the U.S. resulting from climate currents.

Beijing’s apology comes lower than 24 hours earlier than Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s scheduled journey to Beijing to fulfill China’s prime chief, Xi Jinping. Washington cancels the much-anticipated journey. China responds by saying no such journey had even been introduced.

Feb. 4: A U.S. fighter airplane shoots down the balloon as quickly because it drifts over open water off the coast of South Carolina. China calls the downing of its balloon an “apparent overreaction” and continues to insist the balloon was a civilian analysis airship.

Feb. 6: China admits one other high-altitude balloon, noticed over Latin America, belongs to it and says that airship was additionally conducting climate analysis.

Comparable balloons had been noticed as early as 2019, over Japan. Final winter, the U.S. Air Power in Hawaii scrambled jets to intercept an “unmanned balloon” off the island of Kauai. The pinnacle of Taiwan’s central climate bureau claims a number of balloons much like the one shot down by the U.S. have appeared in Taiwan’s airspace, however later retracts his assertion.

Feb. 8: The U.S. State Division tells reporters the shot-down Chinese language balloon is a part of a “fleet” of balloons overseen by the Individuals’s Liberation Military. Photos of the balloon, officers say, confirmed it had tools onboard {that a} regular climate balloon wouldn’t want — together with massive photo voltaic panels, a number of antennas and sensors for intelligence surveillance.

Feb. 9: The U.S. briefs diplomats from 40 international locations in regards to the Chinese language balloon it shot down. On Capitol Hill, each chambers of Congress obtain categorised briefings on the incident. The Home passes a unanimous decision condemning China’s alleged surveillance of the U.S.

A excessive altitude balloon floats over Billings, Mont., on Feb. 1.

Larry Mayer/The Billings Gazette /by way of AP

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Larry Mayer/The Billings Gazette /by way of AP

Feb. 10: Friction between the U.S. and China over balloons continues to ramp up. The U.S. sanctions six civilian Chinese language aerospace firms it says are supporting Beijing’s navy surveillance efforts.

Feb. 10-12: The U.S. shoots down three unidentified objects in as many days, all present in North American airspace.

Requested by NPR’s Michel Martin about what he is aware of about these objects, Rep. Jim Himes of the Home Intelligence Committee says: “It could possibly be simply residual experiments that had been achieved by anybody, frankly. They may truly be lively Wi-Fi balloons. They may truly be lively climate balloons. I am comparatively positive that they are not a risk in any technique to the folks of the US or to our nationwide safety.”

Feb. 13: China hits again with its personal balloon allegations, accusing the U.S. of flying its personal excessive altitude balloons into Chinese language airspace, with out Beijing’s permission, on greater than 10 events since January 2022.

Wang Wenbin, a Chinese language overseas ministry spokesperson, says this reveals the U.S. is “indubitably the world’s largest surveillance ordinary offender and surveillance empire.” The U.S. Nationwide Safety Council denies the allegations.

“We don’t ship spy balloons over China, interval,” Blinken tells NPR’s Morning Version, in response to China’s accusation.

And the White Home individually reassures Individuals: “There isn’t any – once more, no — indication of aliens or extraterrestrial exercise with these current takedowns,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre says at her each day briefing.

Feb. 14: The U.S. navy says it has recovered key sensors from the downed Chinese language balloon. Senators obtain a categorised briefing on the unidentified objects, with members of each events leaving the briefing saying they’re assured that the spate of unidentified floating objects shot down by U.S. jets in current days don’t pose an instantaneous risk to Individuals. However some urge Biden administration officers to share extra data with the general public after a categorised briefing.

Emily Feng reported from Taipei. Lexie Schapitl reported from Washington, D.C. Vincent Ni and Padmananda Rama contributed to this report from Washington, D.C.