< br />WASHINGTON, Jun 29 The Pentagon has concluded that the Chinese balloon that was shot down in February did not collect or transmit intelligence information while flying over the United States, although it carried spy equipment, an agency official said Patrick Ryder.
«We know that he had intelligence capabilities, but concluded that he was not gathering (intelligence information) during … the flight over the United States,» he said at a media briefing.
The Americans shot down a Chinese balloon after it crossed US territory and ended up over the Atlantic Ocean. President Joe Biden later agreed that the craft was off course and claimed that Chinese President Xi Jinping was unaware of what had happened.