US accuses the Chinese military of being behind vast aerial spy programme

China’s military is probably behind an aerial spy programme targeting more than 40 countries on five continents with high-altitude surveillance balloons similar to one the US shot down over the Atlantic Ocean coast, President Joe Biden’s administration said.

The statement from a senior State Department official offered the most detail to date linking China’s People’s Liberation Army to the balloon that traversed the United States, with the administration saying China has developed a vast surveillance programme capable of collecting sensitive intelligence.

On Thursday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning repeated China’s insistence the large unmanned balloon was a civilian meteorological airship accidentally blown off course and that the US “overreacted” by shooting it down.

“It is irresponsible,” Ms Mao said.

The latest accusations “may be part of the US side’s information warfare against China”, she added.

The official said an analysis of the balloon debris is “inconsistent” with China’s explanation.

The US is contacting the other countries targeted, the official said, to discuss the scope of the Chinese spy programme.

The official provided details to reporters by email on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the matter, which has already forced the cancellation of a planned visit to China earlier this week by US secretary of state Antony Blinken.

The official said the US is confident the manufacturer of the balloon shot down on Saturday has “a direct relationship with China’s military and is an approved vendor of the” army.

The official cited information from an official PLA procurement portal as evidence for the connection between the company and the military.