Contrary to assurances from Biden administration officials that the Chinese spy balloon that traversed the country earlier this year did not collect and transmit data, a previously undisclosed phone call reveals a scenario where top officials concealed information about the craft.

NBC News reported that a phone conversation on Jan. 27 between President Joe Biden's top military adviser, Gen. Mark Milley, and NORAD chief Gen. Glen VanHerck has provided fresh insights into China's surveillance balloon.

The network revealed that the administration's initial intention was to keep the existence of the balloon concealed from Congress and the public, as per accounts from several former and current administration and congressional officials, as Fox News reported.

Conflicting Accounts on Spy Balloon Secrecy

A former senior U.S. official disclosed, "Before it was spotted publicly, there was the intention to study it and let it pass over and not ever tell anyone about it."

However, a senior official from the Biden administration refuted these allegations, emphasizing that any secrecy was primarily for protecting sensitive intelligence capabilities.

"To the extent any of this was kept quiet at all, that was in large part to protect intel equities related to finding and tracking them," the official stated.

They further clarified that there was never an intention to withhold this information from Congress.

Details of the Covert Surveillance

During the pivotal phone call on Jan. 27, Milley informed VanHerck of the Pentagon's plan to deploy F-22 jets and other aircraft to assess the balloon's features.

Subsequent analysis by U.S. military jets, using targeting pods, identified the balloon as a massive surveillance instrument, approximately the size of three school buses, but lacking offensive capabilities.

President Biden was reportedly not briefed on the situation until Feb. 1, with the public remaining unaware until Feb. 2, when NBC News initially reported the incident.

Concerns Over U.S. Surveillance Capabilities

Gen. Glen VanHerck expressed serious concerns regarding the Chinese balloon program and the United States' lack of preparedness in detecting and tracking such threats.

"It exposed significant gaps, long range gaps, for us to be able to see potential threats to the homeland," he explained, highlighting the need for improved deterrence and defensive measures.

The Aftermath and Diplomatic Tensions

The public exposure of the spy balloon in early 2023 led to widespread outcry and diplomatic repercussions.

Biden administration officials privately expressed their concerns over the strain this incident placed on U.S.-China relations.

A senior administration official remarked on the extensive issues caused by the balloon's detection, noting its more severe impact on diplomatic relations than its actual incursion into U.S. airspace.

The White House, under President Biden's leadership, defended the delayed response in shooting down the balloon, citing safety concerns due to the balloon carrying several thousand pounds of equipment.

The decision to finally destroy the craft over the South Carolina coast raised questions about why similar action wasn't taken earlier as it traversed waters near Alaska.