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Feb. 3, 5:49 p.m. EST

Previous balloon incidents near Hawaii, Guam in 2022: US officials

U.S. officials confirmed that previous balloon incidents involving China occurred near Hawaii and Guam last year.

In February 2022, a balloon appeared to be stationary in international
waters northwest of Kauai, Hawaii, the officials said.

The Hawaii incident came shortly after a similar incident that year near
Guam, according to one of the officials.

Both incidents in the Pacific involved high-altitude balloons that came
from China, the officials said.

-ABC News' Luis Martinez

Feb. 3, 5:30 p.m. EST

'Gang of 8' to be briefed on surveillance balloon next week

The so-called "Gang of 8" will receive a briefing from the administration
on the Chinese surveillance balloon next week, according to a spokesperson
for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

The "Gang of 8" includes congressional leadership and the top Democrat and Republican members of the House and Senate intelligence committees:
Schumer, Sen. Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, House
Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, Sen. Marco Rubio, Sen. Mark Warner,
Rep. Jim Himes and Rep. Mike Turner.

The exact date and time of the briefing is not yet known.

-ABC News' Allison Pecorin

Feb. 03, 4:44 p.m. EST

US may wait to shoot balloon down over the Atlantic: US official

As the balloon appears to be heading toward North Carolina, the current thinking is to wait until it is over the Atlantic Ocean to then try to
shoot it down and retrieve it, according to a senior U.S. official
familiar with the situation.

There is too great a risk to try to shoot it down over the continental
U.S., the official said. Since the U.S. wants to keep the balloon to study
it, and there are otherwise risks of an international incident, U.S.
officials are working on plans to shoot it down so that it also lands in
U.S. territorial waters, the official said.

A substantial localized airspace shutdown will likely be required in order
to protect civilians while the U.S. tries to down the balloon, which is
likely being navigated via Chinese spy satellites, the official said.

Feb. 03, 4:28 p.m. EST

'Job One' is getting balloon out of US airspace: Blinken

Secretary of State Antony Blinken, taking questions about the Chinese surveillance balloon, said the first step should be getting it out of U.S. skies.

"Job One is getting it out of our airspace," he said.

Blinken said they've made it clear to China the action is "clearly unacceptable" and addressed further his decision to delay traveling to
Beijing until conditions allow for a visit.

"Any country that has its airspace violated in this way, I think would
respond similarly," he said. "And I can only imagine what the reaction
would be in China if they were on the other end."

Feb. 03, 4:02 p.m. EST

Blinken calls Chinese balloon an 'irresponsible act' on eve of his planned
trip

Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the surveillance balloon an "irresponsible act" by the People's Republic of China.

Blinken said he made clear to Wang Yi, the director of China's Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, that the balloon's presence is "a clear violation of U.S. sovereignty and international law ... and that the PRC's decision to take this action on the eve of my planned visit is detrimental
to the substantive discussions that we were prepared to have."

Blinken postponed his first official trip to China amid the controversy.

The secretary of state said his team had been engaging "for some time"
with their counterparts in Beijing to prepare but have now "concluded that conditions were not conducive for a constructive visit at this time."

The remarks were made Friday during a joint press availability with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin at the State Department.

Feb. 03, 2:16 p.m. EST

Biden first briefed Tuesday, took military's recommendation on balloon: WH

President Joe Biden was first briefed about the Chinese surveillance
balloon on Tuesday, according to White House press secretary Karine Jean- Pierre, two days before the news was publicly confirmed by U.S. officials.

"He asked the military to present options," she told reporters in a gaggle
on Air Force One. "It was the strong recommendation by Secretary Austin, Chairman Milley, the commander of Northern Command, not to take kinetic
action because of the risk to safety and security of the people on the
ground. President Biden took that recommendation from the military
seriously."

"The president will always put the safety of the security of the American people first," she said.

Jean-Pierre said Biden continues to receive regular briefings from
national security team, and that he "agreed" with Secretary of State
Blinken's decision to delay his trip to China.

"We are tracking closely and keeping all options on the table," the press secretary said.

Feb. 03, 1:41 p.m. EST

Biden again ignores questions on Chinese balloon

President Joe Biden didn't answer questions reporters shouted about the
Chinese surveillance balloon as he left the White House and boarded Marine
One shortly after 1 p.m. Friday.

Biden has yet to publicly comment on the balloon since it was confirmed to
be flying over the continental U.S. by officials on Thursday.

Biden is heading to Philadelphia, where he and Vice President Kamala
Harris will appear at an infrastructure event in the afternoon and then
later will speak at the Democratic National Committee's winter meeting.

Feb. 03, 1:27 p.m. EST

'Gang of 8' staff received classified briefing on Chinese surveillance
balloon

Staff to the so-called "Gang of 8" received a classified briefing on the balloon by the administration Thursday afternoon, according to multiple congressional officials.

The "Gang of 8" refers to the group of congressional leaders who are
briefed on classified intelligence matters. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., requested a meeting with the group on Thursday.

"China's brazen disregard for U.S. sovereignty is a destabilizing action
that must be addressed, and President Biden cannot be silent," McCarthy
said.

It's unclear if the classified briefing for the staff is a precursor to
their bosses being briefed. No meeting appears to be on the books so far.

-ABC News' Trish Turner

Feb. 03, 12:50 p.m. EST

Surveillance balloon is 'maneuverable,' Pentagon says

After saying the Chinese surveillance ballon was headed eastward, Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said the balloon is
"maneuverable."

"So, the balloon is maneuverable. Clearly, it's violated U.S. air space,
and again we've communicated that fact to the PRC," Ryder said.


"The balloon has changed its course, which is why we are monitoring it.
That is as specific as I can get," he said, not giving further details on
how it could be maneuvered.

"We continue to assess and make appropriate decisions based on how we are
going to address what we perceive as a potential threat," Ryder added.
"The safety and security of the American people is paramount. At this time
we assess it does not pose a physical threat to people on the ground."

Feb. 03, 12:33 p.m. EST

Pentagon confirms shooting down balloon was an 'option'

Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder confirmed Friday that shooting down the balloon was considered.

"In terms of the discussions about whether or not to shoot down this
balloon, that was an option. That was something that was taken into consideration," Ryder said. "Again, because we assessed that currently it
does not pose a physical or military risk to people on the ground, for now
we are continuing to monitor and review options."

Ryder said because of the "size" of the balloon, "any potential debris
field would be significant and potential cause civilian injuries or deaths
or significant property damage."

Ryder was asked multiple times if the U.S. will shoot down the balloon
once it's over a body of water.

"We are monitoring the situation closely, but beyond that I will not have
any additional information," he said.

When asked how close President Joe Biden was to ordering a shootdown of
the balloon, Ryder said he "will not get into internal discussions with
the White House."

Feb. 03, 12:19 p.m. EST

'We know its a surveillance balloon,' Pentagon says, disputing China's
claims

Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder disputed statements from China that the balloon spotted over the continental U.S. is a
meteorological research device.

"We are aware of the PRC (People's Republic of China) statements. However,
the fact is, we know it's a surveillance balloon," Ryder said. "I'm not
going to be able to be more specific than that."

"We do know that the balloon has violated U.S. airspace and international
law, which is not acceptable," Ryder told reporters. "We've conveyed this directly to the PRC at multiple levels.

Feb. 03, 12:13 p.m. EST

Balloon is moving eastward, now hovering over the central US

Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder provided an update
Friday on where the balloon is flying.

"While we won't get into specifics in regards to the exact location I can
tell you that the balloon continues to move eastward and is currently over
the center of the continental United States," Ryder told reporters.
"Again, we currently assess that the balloon does not present a military
or physical threat to people on the ground at this time."

Feb. 03, 12:04 p.m. EST

GOP lawmaker says he's in favor of 'shooting' China balloon down

Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher, chair of the newly-formed House Select Committee on China, told ABC News Live on Friday he doesn't "buy" China's statements that the balloon flying over the U.S. is a meteorological
device that was blown off course.

"It also doesn't strike me as a coincidence that this was in the vicinity
of the Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana," Gallagher said, "where we
have our Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles."

Gallagher said he believed Secretary of State Anthony Blinken made "the
right call" postponing his trip to China over the controversy.

On the balloon itself, Gallagher said he was "in favor of shooting it
down."

"I think we had plenty of options to shoot it down or even better, find a
way to reduce its altitude and capture it so we can get a look at the instrumentation," he told ABC News' Alexis Christoforous.

Feb. 03, 11:35 a.m. EST

US will keep lines of communication open with China: Official

A senior State Department official said the U.S. was still dedicated to
keeping lines of communication with China open despite postponing
Secretary Antony Blinken's visit.

"The secretary was prepared to depart for Beijing tonight to take on a wide-ranging agenda," the official told reporters. "We have noted the PRC statement of regret, but the presence of this balloon in our airspace is a clear violation of our sovereignty as well as international law. And it is unacceptable it has occurred."

"After consolations with our interagency partners, as well as with
Congress, we have concluded that the conditions are not right at the
moment for Secretary Blinken to travel to China," the official added.

The official said Blinken has indicated he will visit China when
conditions allow, but did not stipulate what those conditions would have
to be.

They also said talks with Beijing would continue across multiple levels of government and that Blinken had been in touch with his Chinese counterpart Friday morning.

"We will maintain open lines of communication with the PRC to address our concerns about this ongoing incident and to responsibly manage the
competition between our countries," the official said.

Asked whether the department believed China's explanation of the balloon's purpose and how it happened into American airspace, the official said, "We remain confident in our assessment of the situation."

-ABC News' Shannon Crawford

<https://abc7.com/chinese-spy-balloon-china-over-montana-us/12766077/>

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