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UK fighter jets ready to shoot down any Chinese spy balloons

Britain is ready to launch fighter jets to shoot down any spy balloons from China if they are found flying over the country, Rishi Sunak has suggested.

After the US military shot down four objects above the US, the prime minister stated that the UK will not accept any Beijing surveillance missions in British airspace.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has ordered a security review, while fellow Tory minister Richard Holden has stated that spy balloons are “possible” in UK skies.

When queried about the situation by broadcasters on Monday, Mr Sunak said the government would do “everything it takes” to safeguard the country.

The PM said: “I want people to know that we will do everything it takes to keep the country safe. We have something called the Quick Reaction Alert Force which involves Typhoon planes which are kept on 24/7 readiness to police our air space.”

“I can’t go into detail on national security matters, but we’re in constant touch with our allies and we’ll do whatever it takes to keep our country safe,” he added.

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On Saturday, February 4, the first balloon was shot down above the United States, while a “high altitude object” was shot down over Alaska on Friday.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he authorised a US warplane to shoot down an unidentified object flying high over northern Canada.

The US military announced on Sunday that it had shot down another unidentified object flying over Lake Huron, which connects the American states of Michigan and Ontario in Canada.

The White House reported that Chinese balloons had been sighted across five continents, but did not specify which ones.

Mr Wallace stated that the UK would analyse intelligence and assess the threat posed by the surveillance devices in collaboration with the US and other partners.

“The UK and her allies will review what these airspace intrusions mean for our security. This development is another sign of how the global threat picture is changing for the worse,” said the defence secretary.

Mr Wallace said earlier this week that Chinese spy balloons may well have already circled the UK. “Is it the case that a Chinese satellite has probably circled Britain and looked at us? I should think yes.’”

Earlier on Monday, Mr Holden, a transport minister told Sky News: “It is also possible, and I would think likely, that there would be people from the Chinese government trying to act as a hostile state.”

Mr Holden said the UK had to be “robust” in how it dealt with Beijing, admitting the UK government was “concerned about what’s going on” in the US.

Downing Street said the UK was “well prepared to deal with threats to our airspace”. Mr Sunak’s official spokesman said: “We have a quick reaction force … And we have very capable ways of maintaining and spotting threats to our airspace.”

No 10 also revealed that the UK’s official designation of China will be reviewed as part of the update to the Integrated review of security, defence and foreign policy.

Mr Sunak’s predecessor Liz Truss was thought to be keen to formally redesignate China as a “threat” to Britain.

Asked whether the government was likely to change China’s designation, Mr Sunak’s spokesman said: “It is something that is being reviewed as part of the integrated review. You’ll see our position when it is published.”

Alicia Kearns, chair of the foreign affairs select committee, said British airspace is “protected by an exceptionally quick reaction force, which has proved itself very capable against unknown and hostile aircraft”.

“The US will share with us and Five Eyes allies its conclusions on the capabilities of the Chinese balloons, and at that point, an internal review of our ability to identify, track, disrupt and destroy these balloons will be undertaken,” she told The Telegraph.

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