Colombia announced this weekend that a balloon had flown over its territory, after the United States alerted on Friday to a "
Chinese surveillance balloon
" spotted over Latin America.
The Colombian Air Force said the balloon was detected on Friday morning and monitored until it left national airspace, and assured that it had not at any time "
threatened
" security and the defense of the country.
On February 3, "
the National Air Defense System detected an object above 55,000 feet, which entered Colombian airspace through the northern sector of the country, moving at an average speed of 25 knots and having the characteristics of a balloon
,” the army said in a statement on Saturday.
Read alsoChinese balloon shot down by the United States: Beijing “reserves the right” to retaliate
The Colombian Air Force added that it was conducting "
verifications with different countries and institutions to establish the origin of the object
".
On Friday, the Pentagon said a second Chinese surveillance balloon was spotted flying over Latin America, a day after a similar balloon was found over the United States.
No details on the location of this second balloon or its trajectory were then given.
The US military on Saturday, on the orders of President Joe Biden, shot down the Chinese balloon which was flying over the United States, provoking strong criticism from Beijing.