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U.S. lawmakers demanded answers Thursday from top U.S. military officials, asking why a Chinese balloon surveilling the United States last week was not brought down sooner. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more from Capitol Hill.
Content TypePackage
LanguageEnglish
Transcript/ScriptUS China Balloon
HEADLINE: Lawmakers Demand Answers on Wait to Shoot Down Chinese Surveillance Balloon
TEASER: US State Department confirms balloon was collecting intelligence
PUBLISHED AT: 02/10/2023 at 7:40 pm
BYLINE: Katherine Gypson
PRODUCERS: Katherine Gypson
CONTRIBUTING:
DATELINE: Washington
VIDEOGRAPHER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Holly Franko, Michael Bowman, David Jones
VIDEO SOURCE (S): AP, ABC, feeds
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __
TRT: 2:51
VID APPROVED BY: mia
TYPE: TVPKG
UPDATE: ))
[[NOTE: All broll for this piece is in Frame.io-Central Workspace-In-Progress-Katherine Gypson-China Balloon]]
((TV/web intro: ))
[[U.S. lawmakers demanded answers Thursday from top U.S. military officials, asking why a Chinese balloon surveilling the United States last week was not brought down sooner. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more from Capitol Hill.]]
((Narrator))
((Still DOD photo of shot down balloon in ABC Chinese balloon then over to broll of balloon)) ((Mandatory credit: AFP/Chase Doak))
The Chinese balloon shot down last week
((Mandatory credit: AFP/Paul Inman))
carried devices to intercept sensitive communications,
((Mandatory credit: AFP/@_alex_davis_))
the U.S. State Department said Thursday …
((AP))
as U.S. lawmakers demanded answers as to why the balloon was allowed to cross the country before being shot down.
((Sen. Jon Tester, Democrat))
((MRT for kgyp tester problem))
“I'll just tell you, I don't want a damn balloon going across the United States when we potentially could have taken it down over the Aleutian Islands.”
((Narrator))
((Cutaways of hearing then back to broll of balloon being shot down))
But top U.S. officials told lawmakers the decision to wait to shoot down the balloon over water was beneficial.
((Melissa Dalton, Assistant Secretary of Defense))
((MRT for kgyp three benefits to waiting))
“It gave us additional time to observe the balloon. Again, assessing the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China’s] capabilities and tradecraft simultaneously, we protected against intelligence collection, which, again, was relatively straightforward since we knew where the balloon was. Second, this allowed us to refine options and decrease the risk of debris causing harm to civilians.”
((Narrator))
((Use shots of other Democratic Senators speaking at stakeout mic in MRT clips for kgyp))
Senators given additional information in a classified briefing said the U.S. was still not doing enough to combat the threat ...
((Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Democrat))
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“We should be pounding on the door at the Pentagon and our intelligence community to up their game to be more vigilant and vigorous in countering this kind of spying and surveillance, which is a form of warfare.”
((Narrator))
((Broll of balloon))
The Pentagon argued the damaged balloon will provide important information about Chinese surveillance efforts ...
((Jedidiah Royal, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense))
((MRT for kgyp we knew what they were looking for))
“We understand that this is part of the broader suite of operations that China's undertaking to try and get a better understanding of U.S.”
((Narrator))
((Use shots of other Republicans Senators speaking at stakeout mic in MRT clips for kgyp))
… But many Republicans remained frustrated with the Biden administration’s response…
((Sen. Tom Cotton, Republican))
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“A heroic effort of spin and deception that carried zero plausibility. The administration has no plausible explanation for why they didn't shoot this balloon down [sooner].”
((Narrator))
((Broll of Biden and Chinese President Xi))
U.S. lawmakers said the incident is a key turning point in the U.S.-China relationship.
((Sen. Bob Menendez, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman))
((MRT for kgyp menendez Chinese Spy Balloon))
“A blatant violation of our sovereignty by a country that claims to be a responsible actor. Either this was a huge mistake by some entity within the Chinese government or it was a test of our resolve.”
((Narrator))
A top U.S. diplomat assuring lawmakers the United States is committed to a clear strategy.
((Wendy Sherman, Deputy Secretary of State))
((MRT for kgyp we will confront))
“This irresponsible act put on full display what we've long recognized, as the PRC has become more repressive at home and more aggressive abroad. It reinforced the need for us to double down on our strategy to invest, align, compete.”
((Narrator))
The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution Thursday condemning China and asking the Biden administration for more answers about the decision on when to shoot down the balloon.
((Katherine Gypson, VOA News, Washington))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)Washington D. C.
Embargo DateFebruary 9, 2023 20:36 EST
Byline
((Katherine Gypson, VOA News, Washington))
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
