Schumer announce comprehensive China briefing next week after shooting Chinese spy balloon

The full senate would receive a comprehensive briefing on China next week announced Chuck Schumer, US Senate Majority Leader on Sunday, reported CNN. The statement comes from the US Senate Majority leader after the US shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon over the Atlantic Ocean off the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. It is to be noted that the first spy balloon was discovered over the continental US several days ago. 

“The full Senate -- all senators of both parties -- will have a larger and full China briefing next week. And that is something that I think will be very important, serious and hopefully nonpolitical,” said the New York Democrat while addressing a news conference in Manhattan.

Briefing on suspected Chinese spy balloon 

The briefing on the suspected spy balloon, which was shot down by the US, would include information about China’s surveillance capabilities, research and development, advanced weapons systems, and other “critical platforms,” said Schumer while talking about what all will be covered in the briefing. 

“Under this full brief, all senators in both parties will be briefed by the Department of Defense on their office of Net Assessment (ONA) US-China Overmatch Study," said the senate majority leader.

Further, he strongly opposed criticism from GOP lawmakers who were questioning the Biden administration on how they handled this suspected Chinese spy balloon. While opposing the GOP lawmakers, he said, "We are hearing GOP criticism of the balloon mission. That they are saying we should have shot down the balloon the minute we saw it. I would use two words in answering these GOP criticisms: They are premature and they are political."

Further, he said, "Our friends are playing politics with US intelligence. Our friends are playing politics with US intelligence. We sent a clear message to China that this is not acceptable. We protected civilians". He also shared that they have gained more intelligence while protecting their own sensitive information. "And the bottom line here is shooting down the surveillance balloon over the water wasn’t just the safest option, but it was the one that maximized our intelligence payload," the senator majority leader added.