Beijing: China expressed strong dissatisfaction and opposition towards the US use of force to attack China's civilian unmanned airship, Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Sunday in a statement.
The Chinese side has, after verification, repeatedly informed the US side of the civilian nature of the airship and conveyed that its entry into the US due to force majeure was totally unexpected, the statement said.
It further noted that the Chinese side had clearly asked the US side to properly handle the matter in a calm, professional and restrained manner, Xinhua News Agency reported.
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Friday when answering a relevant query that the civilian airship is used for research, mainly meteorological purposes. Affected by the Westerlies and with limited self-steering capability, the airship deviated far from its planned course.
According to the statement, the spokesperson of the US Department of Defense also noted the balloon does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground.
Under such circumstances, the US use of force is a clear overreaction and a serious violation of international practice.
China will resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the company concerned, and reserve the right to make further responses if necessary, said the statement.
The US fighter jets Sunday shot down the Chinese unmanned airhsip what it called was a spy and surveillance balloon. The airship was spotted over the sky in United States three days back.
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