Blinken remarks came after The Washington Post reported that the US believes the suspected surveillance balloon project was being operated from China's coastal Hainan province and targeted countries including Japan, India, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines.
As rescuers are racing against time to find more survivors in Turkey and Syria amid the harsh freezing temperatures, the death toll from the devastating earthquake that struck the two countries earlier this week has increased to 15,383 as of Thursday, according to authorities.
Visiting the badly-impacted city of Kahramanmaras, he told residents that the rescue effort was now "under control" and "getting easier", blaming initial delays to the government response on damaged roads and airports hampering the delivery of emergency aid.
The death toll from the devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria earlier this week has reached 9,638 on Wednesday, with rescue efforts becoming "harder" due to freezing weather in the two countries, authorities said.
The US believes that the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that it shot down on February 4 over the Atlantic Ocean, was part of a wider effort by Beijing to spy on military assets in other countries, including India.
In its latest update, Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said that total of 60,218 emergency officials are working in the affected-areas, including 3,200 personnel from 65 countries.
US President Joe Biden cited the shooting down of a Chinese spy balloon last week to warn Beijing that Washington "will act" if its sovereignty was threatened.
"We are inviting Internet-users across the Indo-Pacific and beyond to join the Challenge and pledge to practice safe and responsible cyber habits," the White House said in an announcement.
This was disclosed by special assistant to the Prime Minister on interior and legal affairs with the status of Federal Minister, Attaullah Tarar, in a news conference in Islamabad on Tuesday, Samaa TV reported.
Amid harsh weather conditions, rescuers in Turkey and Syria were racing against time to find more survivors believed to be trapped under debris as the death toll from the devastating 7.8-magnitude quake crossed 5,000 on Tuesday.
The death toll due to the devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria has increased to more than 4,300 as rescuers are racing against time to find more survivors amid heavy rain and snow in the two neighbouring nations, according to media reports.
The 7.8 magnitude quake struck near Turkey's Gaziantep early on Monday (local time) and its tremors were said to be felt all around the Middle East region from Cairo to Beirut to Baghdad. It even prompted Italy to declare a tsunami warning.
At least 326 people were killed and 1,042 others injured following the devastating earthquake in northwestern Syria on Monday, local media reported.
Hours after Monday morning's devastating 7.9 magnitude earthquake struck the Turkey-Syria border area, leaving at least 912 dead in Turkey and 326 in Syria, another powerful earthquake, of magnitude 7.5, was recorded in Turkey, reports said.
The attacks took place between Saturday night and Sunday morning at different villages in Dhantala, Charol and Paria Unions in the area, Baliadangi Police Station chief Khairul Anam said.
India's diplomatic influence rose last year with experts giving high marks to its leaders' ability to pursue the nation's interests in Asia and globally, a leading Australian think tank that ranks influencers in the region reported Sunday.
After a silence of over 100 days since her resignation as prime minister after serving the shortest term in this office in British history, Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak's immediate predecessor, launched a broadside against her successor on Sunday.
-Pervez-Musharraf.jpg "Architect of Kargil War, Musharraf was Pak's longest-serving president")
Musharraf assumed the post of Chief Executive after imposing martial law in the country in 1999 and served as the president of Pakistan from 2001 to 2008, The Express Tribune reported.
Former Pakistan army chief and president Pervez Musharraf passed away on Sunday after a protracted battle with a rare health condition called amyloidosis, local media reported.
The 79-year-old former president and chief of army staff was suffering from amyloidosis, a rare disease caused by a build-up of an abnormal protein called amyloid in organs and tissues throughout the body, according to his family.
The locals tortured the two men before burning them alive, rescue sources said. The two men died on the spot and their bodies were shifted to a nearby hospital, they added, The News reported.
China expressed strong dissatisfaction and opposition towards the US use of force to attack China's civilian unmanned airship, Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Sunday in a statement.
President Biden said he had ordered the military to shoot it down on Wednesday in internal discussions preceding the public disclosure. Military leaders had recommended waiting because of fear of falling debris on civilian population underneath.
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday accused the coalition government of the country of using the recent wave of terrorism to gain "political mileage" for its own benefit, local media reported.
The United States has postponed Secretary of State Antony Blinken's upcoming visit to Beijing over a Chinese surveillance balloon floating over America, calling it a "clear and unacceptable violation of national sovereignty (of the United States) and international laws".
