WASHINGTON (AP) — China’s balloon that crossed the United States was equipped to collect intelligence signals and was part of a huge, military-linked aerial spy program that targeted more than 40 countries, the Biden administration said Thursday, outlining the scope and capabilities of the huge balloon that captivated the country's attention before the U.S. shot it down.

A fleet of balloons operates under the direction of the People's Liberation Army and is used specifically for spying, outfitted with high-tech equipment designed to collect sensitive information from targets across the globe, the U.S. said. Similar balloons have floated over five continents, according to the administration.

The statement from a senior State Department official offered the most detail to date linking China’s military to the balloon that was shot down by the U.S. last weekend over the Atlantic Ocean. The public details are meant to refute China’s persistent denials that the balloon was used for spying, including a claim Thursday that U.S. accusations about the balloon amount to “information warfare” against Beijing.

In Beijing, before the U.S. offered new information, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning repeated her nation's insistence that the large unmanned balloon was a civilian meteorological airship that had blown off course and that the U.S. had “overreacted” by shooting it down.

“It is irresponsible,” Mao said. The latest accusations, she said, “may be part of the U.S. side...

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