Biden says Chinese president does not want to ‘rip the relationship’ with US over ‘spy’ balloon
Chinese President Xi Jinping does not want to damage relations with the US over the “spy” balloon shot down over North America, President Joe Biden has said.
“I think the last thing that Xi wants is to fundamentally rip the relationship with the United States and with me,” Mr Biden told Sky News’ affiliate NBC News.
In remarks to the nation earlier, Mr Biden said three unidentified objects shot down by the US did not appear to have been used for spying and were likely tied to benign purposes.
Instead, the objects were “most likely” linked to private companies or research institutions, according to the US president.
Tensions have been mounting between the US and China after Washington shot down what it called a Chinese “spy” balloon over North American airspace.
The White House previously said China is running a “high-altitude balloon programme” for intelligence gathering.
Three other unidentified objects were later shot down by US fighter jets, one over Alaska, another over Canada and a third that plunged into Lake Huron.
Mr Biden said “nothing right now suggests they were related to the Chinese spy balloon programme, or they were surveillance vehicles from any other country”.
He said the intelligence community believes the objects were “most likely balloons tied to private companies, recreation or research institutions”.
They might have been spotted due to enhanced radar in response to the Chinese balloon, he said, adding that his team were working on new parameters on when to launch missiles at such aircraft.
Read more:
US balloons flew over China’s airspace ‘more than 10 times over past year’
US on heightened state of alert over flying objects
A timeline of what and where fighter jets have shot down
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Where have flying objects been shot down?
‘We are not looking for a new Cold War’
The president said he made no apologies for protecting America’s skies and said the US would improve its capacity to detect unmanned objects in its airspace.
But he said: “We are not looking for a new Cold War with China.”
The US president said he would speak to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping about the balloon, adding: “I hope we are going to get to the bottom of this, but I make no apologies for taking down that balloon.”
Beijing says the 60m (200ft) balloon was for monitoring weather conditions, but Washington says it clearly was a surveillance balloon with a massive undercarriage containing electronics.
It has also claimed the US has flown 10 objects over its airspace – a claim Washington denies.
Donald Trump has waded into the debate surrounding Sydney Sweeney’s jeans ad.
The American Eagle ad, which features the 27-year-old actress, who starred in the HBO series Euphoria and White Lotus, has the tagline “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans”.
It has sparked a debate in the US over race and Western beauty standards.
One of the Sydney Sweeney jeans ads. Pic: AP
In a Truth Social post, the US president described it as the “hottest ad out there”.
Hailing Sweeney as a “registered Republican”, he said the jeans are “flying off the shelves”, adding: “Go get ’em Sydney!”
Most of the criticism of the ad has centred on videos using the word “genes” instead of “jeans”, with one in which Sweeney says: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality and even eye colour. My jeans are blue.”
Critics argued the play on words potentially promotes eugenics, a discredited theory that believed humanity could be improved through the selective breeding of certain traits.
But others have defended the ad, saying the critics are reading too much into its message.
The video appeared on American Eagle’s Facebook page and other social media channels, but is not part of the ad campaign.
In a statement on Instagram on Friday, American Eagle Outfitters said the campaign “is and always was about the jeans. Her jeans. Her story. We’ll continue to celebrate how everyone wears their AE jeans with confidence, their way. Great jeans look good on everyone.”
Stocks in American Eagle Outfitters jumped by 23.3% after Mr Trump’s intervention.
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In his Truth Social post, which he reposted three times to fix various typos, Mr Trump compared the ad with “woke” ones “on the other side of the ledger” – as he criticised other companies, as well as hitting out at Taylor Swift.
“The tide has seriously turned – Being WOKE is for losers, being Republican is what you want to be,” he wrote.
Sky News has contacted Sweeney’s agent for comment.
Police in Tennessee have discovered 14 improvised explosive devices in a man’s home as they were arresting him, the local sheriff’s office said.
Officers were executing a warrant in the home of Kevin Wade O’Neal in Old Fort, about 45 miles (70km) east of Chattanooga, after he had threatened to kill public officials and law enforcement personnel in Polk County.
After arresting the 54-year-old, officers noticed “something smouldering” in the bedroom where he was found.
Kevin Wade O’Neal. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
On closer inspection, they discovered an improvised explosive device and evacuated the house until bomb squad officers arrived at the scene.
Fourteen devices were found inside the property – none of which detonated.
Improvised explosive devices were found in Kevin Wade O’Neal’s home. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
Kevin Wade O’Neal’s home in Old Fort, Tennessee. Pic: Polk County Sheriff’s Office
O’Neal was charged with 11 counts of attempted first-degree murder, corresponding to nine officers and two other people inside the property when the suspect tried to detonate the devices.
He also faces 14 counts of prohibited weapons and one count of possession of explosive components.
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O’Neal is being held at the Polk County jail and his bond is yet to be determined.
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