MOSCOW, February 6 US space to show that the US is now in decline, influential Republican Senator Marco Rubio told ABC.
China, he suggested, «knew exactly what they were doing, and there was a message behind it.» «They knew that (the balloon — ed.) would be seen, they knew that the US government would have to report it, that people would see it in the sky,» said Rubio, who is a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.
The senator expressed the opinion that the «message» is intended to show that the United States, «once a great superpower», is now «devastated» and «in decline».
Rubio also demanded «specific» clarifications from the Pentagon , why the balloon was not shot down earlier and what data it could collect.
On Saturday, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that the military, on behalf of President Joe Biden, shot down a China-owned balloon that fell into American airspace. According to the Pentagon chief, the device was used to monitor strategic facilities. In connection with the situation, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken postponed a visit to China.
China, in turn, said that it does not accept unfounded speculation and hype because of the situation with the device. Beijing said that the situation was caused by force majeure, the device is a weather balloon that deviated from the route, and also noted that the use of US military force against the Chinese civil unmanned balloon is an overreaction, China reserves the right to take further necessary actions.