The U.S. government monitors a Chinese surveillance balloon suspected to be moving over northern US states in the last few days.

Brig. General Pat Ryder stated that the U.S. government had detected a high-altitude surveillance satellite balloon above the continental U.S. during a briefing Thursday afternoon.

The United States government has identified and is monitoring a high-altitude surveillance satellite that is hovering over the United States. Norad will continue to be closely monitored and tracked by the U.S. government. The balloon is traveling at an altitude that is well above that of commercial air traffic. It does not pose a threat to civilians or military personnel. This kind of balloon activity has been seen in the past. Ryder stated that the U.S. government responded immediately to the detection of the balloon and protected sensitive information.”

Senior defense officials stated that the U.S. government was “confident” the surveillance balloon belonged to the People’s Republic of China.

According to the defense official, the balloon was seen recently above Montana. Officials considered bringing it down using military assets but decided against it due to the risk associated. He also said that President Joe Biden was informed about the situation and was asked for military options.

Yesterday’s reports did include a ground stop at Billings Airport, and the mobilization a number assets, including F-22. We had some equipment on standby in case it became necessary to bring the aircraft down over Montana. We wanted to ensure that we coordinated with civil authorities in order to clear out any potential airspace. Despite all the precautions taken, our military commanders concluded that we hadn’t reduced the risk sufficiently. According to the official, “So, we didn’t take the shot.”

Fox News was informed by a senior U.S. official that the government is still considering various options regarding the Chinese spy balloon. He said that Biden and his national security staff were presented with options, including concerns about civilian casualties if the balloon was shot down.

According to the source, the White House is open to shooting down the balloon if necessary.

Sources say there is more to it than a balloon. Heavy equipment could come to rest if it was shot down, creating large debris fields.

Lloyd Austin, Secretary of Defense, convened a meeting Wednesday with top Department of Defense leaders to discuss the balloon. It was decided not take military action because of “the risk to safety or security of people on ground from the possible debris fields,” the official stated. Austin was on a visit to Camp Navarro in Philippines at the time. It is approximately 2,000 miles from China.

The discovery of the balloon comes at a time when the U.S., Philippines and Taiwan have agreed to increase their military presence in the islands. This is amid increasing tensions between China (and Taiwan).

According to the senior defense official, the government had been following the balloon for some time and it entered U.S. Airspace “couple days ago”.

The official maintained that the balloon does not pose a threat to the U.S. military, but said that it is unlikely to be gathering any significant information of value for the People’s Republic of China.

Official said that they are trying to fly the balloon over sensitive sites. One of these was mentioned just to collect information. He also stated that this is not the first time that a balloon “of such nature” has flown over the U.S.