US plans major UFO address amid shock balloon backflip

Joe Biden is considering a rare ‘address to the nation’ after the White House made a stunning U-turn on the Chinese spy balloon.

US president Joe Biden is considering a rare public address after it emerged the Chinese spy balloon was tracked for a week before it entered North American airspace.

The potential “address to the nation”, a setting reserved for major emergencies or natural disasters, would be his first formal remarks on the balloon and three unidentified flying objects shot down over the US since the diplomatic crisis began almost two weeks ago.

It comes amid reports the US is now considering the possibility that China was telling the truth that “force majeure”, or bad weather, blew the balloon off course before an unintentional incursion into American airspace.

Apart from off-the-cuff comments to reporters, Joe Biden has not directly addressed the four unprecedented UFO and balloon engagements in US airspace. Picture: AFP

When the Chinese balloon entered the US over Alaska last month, the US military had been tracking it for nearly a week after it lifted off from Hainan Island, according to The Washington Post.

US officials told the outlet the balloon was headed for the US territory of Guam before it took an unexpected turn north toward Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and over Canada, where strong winds pushed it south into the continental United States.

The stunning turnaround suggests the escalating international crisis has been a mistake, with the three subsequent objects shot down over North America now considered benign objects used for commercial or weather purposes and not to have posed a military threat.

Chinese spy balloon shot down over the Atlantic. Picture: Reuters

Divers recover wreckage from the balloon. Picture: Supplied

Biden is considering an address to the nation over the diplomatic turmoil, according to Bloomberg, as pressure mounts for detail on why the Chinese surveillance satellite was allowed to enter the country, why the US waited to shoot it down, and why the three other objects were subsequently brought down.

China meanwhile vowed to take “countermeasures” against US spy balloons that threaten its sovereignty.

“China has handled the illegal flight of US balloons through our airspace in a calm and professional manner. By contrast, the US overreacted to the unintended entry of a Chinese civilian airship into its airspace caused by force majeure,” said Foreign Minister spokesman Wang Wenbin.

“The US needs to give an explanation to China and the international community, reflect on its behaviour, stop smearing and attacking China and stop misleading the US public and the international community. China reserves the right to further respond if necessary.”

As the US attempts to walk back the escalating crisis, Secretary of State Antony Blinken is attempting to meet with Chinese diplomat Wang Yi at the Munich Security Conference this week, according to Reuters.

It would be the first face-to-face talks since the US shot down China’s balloon on February 4 and Blinken cancelled a trip to Beijing.

Originally published as US plans major UFO address amid shock balloon backflip