What's New?
Some lawmakers have suggested that the mysterious drones reported across several states may have been sent by China, despite assurances from the White House that the objects pose no national security risk.
"My judgment, based on my experience, is that those that are over our military sites are adversarial and most likely are coming from the People's Republic of China," Representative Michael McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told C-SPAN on Tuesday.
"We need to know who is behind that because I believe they're spy drones. The PRC, communist China, is very good at this stuff," the Texas Republican added.
Newsweek has contacted by email the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., for comment.
Why It Matters
The presence of Chinese drones in the U.S., particularly over military bases, would be a concerning violation of national airspace. In addition, it would likely heighten tensions between the two countries, already strained over military and trade-related issues.
"The [drones] flying over our military bases, by definition, I would say, are adversarial," McCaul said.
A similar occurrence last year, in which a Chinese "spy balloon" flew across the U.S., was deemed a violation of "international law and U.S. sovereignty" by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and resulted in the diplomat postponing a planned trip to Beijing.
What To Know
The drone sightings began last month in New Jersey. The Biden administration has since attempted to quell fears that they pose any danger to U.S. safety or national security.
The FBI has received tips regarding around 5,000 reported drone sightings over the past few weeks, around 100 of which merited follow-up investigations, according to White House national security communications adviser John Kirby.
"We have not identified anything anomalous or any national security or public safety risk over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the Northeast," he said.,
Speaking to cable network NewsNation on Monday, GOP Representative Chris Smith of New Jersey called Kirby's statement "very misleading at best." He added that he had heard of drone sightings in proximity to a munitions depot at Naval Weapons Station Earle in his state's Monmouth County.
On Tuesday, President Joe Biden attempted to dissuade rumors that the drones posed any sort of risk, saying that there was "nothing nefarious apparently."
This past Sunday, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said that only some of the reported sightings involved drones and that many were ordinary, manned aircraft.
"We know of no foreign involvement with respect to the sightings in the Northeast," Mayorkas told ABC's George Stephanopoulos.
Mayorkas also said that the government had deployed additional personnel and technology to address the drone sightings and that if any foreign involvement was identified, it would be communicated with the public "accordingly."
Sightings have also been reported near U.S. military bases in Europe, including the Ramstein Air Base in southwestern Germany.
On December 11, the Department of Justice said a U.S. resident and Chinese national had been arrested for "allegedly flying a drone over and taking photographs of Vandenberg Space Force Base" in Santa Barbara County, California.
"This defendant allegedly flew a drone over a military base and took photos of the base's layout, which is against the law," U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said. "The security of our nation is of paramount importance, and my office will continue to promote the safety of our nation's military personnel and facilities."
What People Are Saying
GOP Senator Rick Scott, via X (formerly Twitter), on Tuesday: "The American people don't trust the federal government because the Biden admin has lied again and again about Communist China. They lied about the Chinese spy balloons. Who's to say they are telling the truth about these drones?!"
Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, ranking member of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, responded on December 12 to NewsNation's question about whether the Chinese government was using drones to spy on the U.S.: "It's a nontrivial chance, in the sense that it's definitely a possibility. And the likelihood that they could then access data that is collected by these drones is very high because, as you know, every company in China must provide a backdoor access to user data of their products of any customer anywhere in the world."
GOP Representative Tim Burchett in an interview with NewsNation's Chris Cuomo on Tuesday: "I think what [China] is monitoring is our response. And you are correct, we are going to end up moving on off this thing, and then something's going to happen major because of these drones because we are not paying attention to it."
Democratic Representative Chrissy Houlahan, a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, in a December 13 press release: "Although there have been thousands of reported sightings of drones in the area, the organizations charged with understanding these kinds of potential threats have not, in fact, validated a single sighting as being a drone (using technical means). Also importantly, at this time, there is no indication that this activity is a foreign actor or terrorist actor at all. Lastly, none of the reported activity to date has violated federal laws."
What Happens Next
The House Intelligence Committee held a closed-door briefing on the drone sightings on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the debate over the mysterious presence of the drones and where they come from is continuing.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has requested that special drone detection systems be deployed to New York and New Jersey to deal with the sightings.
On Tuesday, Kirby told the Today show that the U.S. needs "better authorities to deal with that growing ecosystem of drones in U.S. airspace."
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