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.
The prime minister indicated that the UK would not accept any Beijing spy missions in Britain’s airspace after four objects were shot down over the US by the American military.
Defence secretary Ben Wallace has ordered a security review, and fellow Tory minister Richard Holden said it was “possible” spy balloons have been deployed across UK airspace.
Mr Sunak said the government would do “whatever it takes” to protect the country when asked about the matter by broadcasters on Monday.
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.
The first balloon was shot down over the US on Saturday 4 February, while a “high altitude object” was shot down over Alaska on Friday.
Canadian leader Justin Trudeau said on Saturday that he ordered a US warplane to shoot down an unidentified object that was flying high over northern Canada.
On Sunday, the US military said it had shot down another unidentified object flying over Lake Huron, between the American state of Michigan and Canada’s Ontario.
The White House said Chinese balloons had been spotted over five continents, though it did not specify which ones.
Mr Wallace said the UK would work with the US and other partners to examine intelligence and assess the threat posed by the surveillance devices.
“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.
Suspected Chinese spy balloon after being shot down off coast of South Carolina, 4 February
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.
Tobias Ellwood, the Tory chairman of the defence select committee, said China was “exploiting the West’s weakness” with the potential spy balloons.
“I think this is a testament as to where China is going,” he told Times Radio. “It is interpreting our wobbly international rules-based order to its own benefit.”
China claimed it was preparing to shoot down an object near its own coast, but gave no further information. The spy balloons follow years of deteriorating relations between China and the West.
