The United States Coast Guard on Monday imposed a temporary security zone in waters off South Carolina during the military’s search for debris from a suspected Chinese spy balloon shot down by a US fighter jet. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre nevertheless said the U.S. approach to relations with China would remain calm and it was up to China to decide whether it wanted to build on a meeting between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping last November.

The U.S. Coast Guard on Monday imposed a temporary security zone in waters off South Carolina during the military's search for debris from a suspected Chinese spy balloon shot down by a U.S. fighter jet, and the White House said it would keep a calm approach to relations with Beijing.

President Joe Biden told reporters it was always his view that the balloon needed to be shot down and brushed off a question about whether the incident would weaken U.S-China relations.

"No. We made it clear to China what we're going to do," he said. "They understand our position. We're not going to back off. We did the right thing and it's not a question of weakening or strengthening - it's reality."

White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said the balloon's flight over the United States had done nothing to improve already tense relations with China and dismissed Beijing's contention it was for meteorological purposes.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre nevertheless said the U.S. approach to relations with China would remain calm and it was up to China to decide whether it wanted to build on a meeting between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping last November.

"It's up to China to figure out what kind of relationship they want," she said.

The appearance of the Chinese balloon caused a political uproar in the United States and prompted the top U.S. diplomat, Antony Blinken, to cancel a February 5-6 trip to Beijing that both countries hoped would steady their rocky relations.