Just days before Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to travel to China for “high-level talks,” the Pentagon announced that the US government has detected a Chinese spy balloon drifting over the continental United States for the past two days.

Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said:

“The United States government has detected and is tracking a high-altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now. The U.S. government, to include Norad, continues to track and monitor it closely. The balloon is currently traveling at an altitude well above commercial air traffic and does not present a military or physical threat to people on the ground. Instances of this kind of balloon activity have been observed previously over the past several years. Once the balloon was detected, the US government acted immediately to protect against the collection of sensitive information.”

A senior official told Fox News that the government is “confident” the balloon belongs to the People’s Republic of China.