According to information provided by the RCMP on February 14, the extent of foreign involvement in the search to retrieve an unidentified object shot down over the Yukon on February 11 appears to be beyond acceptable levels. .
“The RCMP is working with the CAF to deploy resources to collect the debris and will investigate the incident with domestic and international partners, including the FBI,” said a Cpl spokesperson. Kim Chamberland told The Epoch Times.
The RCMP, Canadian Forces (CAF), and FBI were already known to be involved, but the mention of “international partners” suggests other organizations are involved.
The RCMP says it is not aware of any specific threats to the public, but as a precaution, deployed resources include personnel with experience in dealing with explosives and biological and radiological hazards. increase.
Canada has its own special operations force, the Canadian Joint Incident Response Unit (CJIRU), based in Trenton, Ontario, to deal with such threats.
The Epoch Times contacted the Department of Defense (DND) to confirm whether CJIRU was deployed, but did not hear back immediately and may not get an answer due to the sensitivity of the unit’s work. there is.
There is also the possibility that specialized units of the US military will be involved, but the respective media departments have not commented on this.
The US Department of Defense did not say whether it was involved, and said DND would contact Public Security Canada about the matter. Public Safety Canada said it would contact the RCMP.
The RCMP has not commented on US military involvement, and its latest statement said it would not provide further details about the search operation at this time as the investigation is in its early stages. reason.
Chamberland said the area to be searched covers 3,000 square kilometers, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on February 13 was from the town of Dawson City, 230 kilometers away via Highway 2, to Mayo.
She added that the rugged terrain and snow cover may prevent the wreckage from being successfully retrieved.
Authorities are trying to recover debris from an unidentified flying or floating object that was shot down by a U.S. fighter jet on February 11.
Other unidentified object shot downs include one in Alaska on February 10th and one in Lake Huron on February 12th.
These three events occurred after the United States shot down a transcontinental Chinese reconnaissance balloon off the coast of South Carolina on February 4.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command has not identified the three unidentified objects as balloons, but says it cannot define how they stay in the air.
The Biden administration in the United States said on February 14 that the objects could be of a commercial nature and were not related to espionage.
John Kirby, a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, said: “Intelligence sees these as a likely explanation that they may be balloons tied to commercial or benign purposes. ” he said..