Joe Biden Says Mysterious Flying Objects Shot Down Over North America Not Part of Chinese Spy Balloon Operation

President Joe Biden said Thursday that the three flying objects shot down last weekend over North America were "most likely" balloons from private companies or research institutions and were not linked to the Chinese spy balloon operation.

In his first public address on the mysterious flying objects amid bipartisan pressure from lawmakers demanding additional information, Biden explained the decision to shoot down the three flying objects, USA Today reported.

"I gave the order to take down these three objects due to hazards to civilian commercial air traffic, and because we could not rule out the surveillance risk over sensitive facilities," the president said.

"We acted out of an abundance of caution and had an opportunity that allowed us to take down these these objects safely," he added.

In the wake of the Chinese spy balloon, Biden said the U.S. military defense radars increased the sensitivity levels picking up "more slow-moving objects above our country and around the world," CNBC reported.

In doing so, the president noted that they tracked "three unidentified objects" in Alaska, Canada, and Michigan. However, Biden stressed that there's "no evidence" that more flying objects are in the sky than usual.

He said the intelligence community is still assessing the three flying objects that were shot down but added that "nothing right now suggests that they were related to China's spy balloon program or that they were surveillance vehicles from any other country."

Three Flying Objects Not Part of Chinese Spy Balloon Program

Joe Biden warned that "if any object presents a threat to the safety and security" of the Americans, he will take it down. According to CNN, the president ordered his team to create "sharper rules" when it comes to dealing with unidentified objects in the future.

Biden said these rules would determine those who are likely to "pose safety and security risks" that will require action, and those parameters will be shared with Congress when they are finished.

Biden has directed Jake Sullivan, the country's national security adviser, to lead a "government-wide effort" for how to address similar encounters with flying objects in the future.

The Biden administration will reportedly establish an improved inventory of unmanned flying objects above U.S. airspace and implement additional measures to detect these objects.

Biden said he plans to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping to "get to the bottom" of what happened. However, he noted that he would make "no apologies for taking down that balloon."

Chinese Spy Balloon

The U.S. government said the sensors from the suspected Chinese spy balloon shot down earlier this month were recovered from the Atlantic Ocean.

The U.S. Northern Command noted that the search crews discovered "significant debris from the site, including all of the priority sensor and electronics pieces identified," BBC reported.

The FBI is reportedly now examining these items. The Chinese spy balloon was shot down off the coast of South Carolina by U.S. fighter jets on February 4.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a pre-planned trip to China after it was shot down. Blinken previously said the presence of the surveillance balloon in U.S. airspace is "a clear violation of U.S. sovereignty and international law."

On the other hand, China has accused the U.S. of escalating the dispute over the shot-down surveillance craft. The incident also intensified concerns about the fallout from U.S.-China diplomacy.

According to NBC News, Beijing has reportedly declined Washington's request for a secure call between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chinese National Defense Minister Wei Fenghe.

China reasoned that they declined the call as the U.S. failed to create the right environment for dialogue. A political scientist at the Australian National University, Wen-Ti Sung, suggested that China's refusal to the call was "bluffing."

Beijing previously said that Washington "overreacted" when it shot down the spy balloon, claiming it was a civilian research level that was out of course. However, the U.S. said the surveillance balloon had "multiple antennas" for collecting signal intelligence.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Joe Biden: Downed Objects Likely Not Linked to China's Spy Balloon Program - From Guardian News