Spy balloon row: High-altitude spying marks new low for US-China ties - BBC News

Relations between the superpowers are in limbo as America's top diplomat postpones his trip to Beijing.

18 hours agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, ReutersImage caption, Presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden smiled for the cameras at the G20 summit in NovemberBy Barbara Plett UsherBBC State Department correspondentEven before America's top diplomat Anthony Blinken postponed his visit to Beijing, the US-China relationship was at an all-time low.

Just how low became painfully evident when a day before his departure, an apparent Chinese spy balloon over the state of Montana roiled the tensions he was trying to address.

Eventually, the Chinese foreign ministry claimed the unmanned airship was used for weather research and had blown off course.

The accompanying expression of regret suggested Beijing did not want the incident to mar the secretary of state's visit - the first of its kind in five years.

But the damage was done.

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