Why Did the Pentagon Wait to Blow Up the Balloon?

Miles Yu

Senior Fellow and Director, China Center

Miles Yu

ATLANTIC OCEAN (Feb. 4, 2023) A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter flies over a debris field during recovery efforts of a high-altitude surveillance balloon. The Navy, in joint partnership with the U.S. Coast Guard, are providing multiple units in support of the effort, including ships, aircraft and an Explosive Ordnance Disposal mobile diving and salvage unit. At the direction of the President of the United States and with the full support of the Government of Canada, U.S. fighter aircraft under U.S. Northern Com

A US Coast Guard helicopter flies over a debris field during recovery efforts of a high-altitude surveillance balloon on February 4, 2023, in the Atlantic Ocean. (US Navy photo by Jerry Ireland)

Miles Yu appears on the Brian Kilmeade Show to discuss why the US took so long to shoot down the Chinese balloon, and China's pattern of grey-zone provocations against the US and its allies.

National Security and Defense

Why Did the Pentagon Wait to Blow Up the Balloon?

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