China is strongly criticizing the U.S. for shooting down a Chinese balloon by force.

The spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry said at the regular press conference held on February 22 that the U.S. State Secretary Blinken is turning black into white when he “blamed China for sending in a spy balloon”. He also said the U.S. is indeed the biggest empire which has its own way in monitoring and tapping other countries while infringing on their sovereignty and violating the international law.

China has already made it clear to the U.S. on several occasions that its civil balloon went astray into the airspace of the U.S. and that it was an inevitable and accidental incident, he noted. He also pointed out that China requested the U.S. several times to settle this case in a proper way from the reasonable, cool and professional point of view.

The U.S. ignored the fact and shot down the civil balloon based on its fabricated evidence of a “spy balloon”, he said. He pointed out that it constitutes a grave violation of the international practices and related international commitment as it is a clear abuse of force, excessive response and hysterical act.

On February 5, China issued a statement of the Foreign Ministry expressing strong dissatisfaction and protest over the shooting down of Chinese balloon by the U.S. On the same day, vice-minister of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, upon authorization, lodged a serious protest with the person in charge of the U.S. Embassy in China on behalf of the Chinese government.

The Foreign Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress of China also issued statements on February 16 and 20 respectively to express its strong denunciation and rejection when the Senate and the House of Representatives made a fuss about the “threats from China” after adopting the resolution on the issue of the balloon.

The statements strongly demanded that the U.S. Congress should respect the truth, international law and principle, fundamental norms governing the international relations, and should immediately stop the act of insulting China.

The U.S. conducted a propaganda campaign on a full scale by mobilizing fighters to deal with civil balloons and "unidentified flying object" that pose no threat and even imposing a blockade in the sky. The “Global Times” revealed that all this started from its sinister intention to politicize the incident.

With regard to the incident, Wang Yi, director of the office of the foreign affairs commission, clarified a stand that the U.S. should set its wrongdoing right with sincerity and that, if the U.S. persists in getting the situation worse over this issue, China will face up to it to the end and the U.S. will be held responsible for all the consequences arising therefrom.