(TORONTO) — A high-altitude object tracked over northern Canada has been shot down over the Yukon, officials said.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he ordered the takedown of “an unidentified object that violated Canadian airspace.”
“Canadian and U.S. aircraft were scrambled, and a U.S. F-22 successfully fired at the object,” he tweeted.
Canadian Forces will now recover and analyze the wreckage, Trudeau said.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command said Saturday that its radars and aircraft had tracked a high-altitude object over northern Canada.
The development comes a day after the White House said an unknown “high-altitude object” was shot down over the waters off Alaska.
That object was about the size of a small car and flying at around 40,000 feet, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said Friday. U.S. Northern Command said Saturday it had no further details on the object’s “capabilities, purpose or origin.”
Trudeau said he supported the “decision to take action.”
“Our military and intelligence services will always work together, including through @NORADCommand, to keep people safe,” he tweeted Friday.
The U.S. also shot down a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon off the coast of South Carolina on Feb. 4, after tracking it across the continental U.S. for several days.
U.S. officials said Friday that the undercarriage of the Chinese balloon — where the surveillance equipment and other technology was housed — had been located.
In the wake of the incident, the U.S. Commerce Department said Friday it added six Chinese entities to their Entity List for “supporting the PRC’s military modernization efforts, specifically those related to aerospace programs, including airships and balloons and related materials and components, that are used by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) for intelligence and reconnaissance,” according to a press release.
By adding these companies to the list, the U.S. can block them from “obtaining U.S. items and technologies without U.S. government authorization.”
The move is aimed at sending a “clear message to companies, governments, and other stakeholders globally that the entities on the list present a threat to national security,” the release said.
ABC News’ Luis Martinez and Molly Nagle contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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