4 things to know in the aftermath of the Chinese spy balloon

By Ryan Foley, Christian Post Reporter Saturday, February 11, 2023

Chinese President Xi Jinping speaks at the podium during the meeting between members of the standing committee of the Political Bureau of the 20th CPC Central Committee and Chinese and foreign journalists at The Great Hall of People on Oct. 23, 2022, in Beijing, China. China's ruling Communist Party today revealed the new Politburo Standing Committee after its 20th congress. | Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

China declined to take a call from the US

During a press briefing Wednesday, Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder told reporters that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin reached out to Chinese officials to "request a phone call after the balloon was taken down." He indicated that "the PRC declined to take that call."

For its part, China's Ministry of National Defense confirmed that it refused to take Austin's phone call.

In a statement Thursday, spokesperson Tan Kefei condemned the destruction of the unmanned balloon as an "irresponsible and seriously wrong practice."

Kefei suggested that because the U.S. shot down the balloon, it "failed to create a proper atmosphere for dialogue and exchange between the two militaries."

U.S.-China relations also appeared to take a hit due to the U.S. House's passage of the resolution declaring the spy balloon as an attack on American sovereignty. At a press conference Friday, Ning maintained that the resolution was "purely about scoring political points and dramatizing the whole thing," adding, "China deplores it and firmly opposes it."