This scholarly investigation delves into the legal complexities arising from the People’s Republic of China’s high-altitude balloons entering US airspace. By analyzing landmark cases, such as the Lockerbie incident, this study emphasizes the urgent need for clear liability norms in international airspace. The 2023 Montana Incursion served to clarify the self-defense and proportionality principles under international law. This study examines the nature of these balloons to determine whether they fall under international accords such as the Chicago Convention. It also explores military classifications and legal ambiguities surrounding non-combatant operators in armed conflicts. This paper identifies gaps in the principles of privacy and ethics concerning intelligence gathering within sovereign boundaries. It advocates for new multilateral treaties with geofencing standards to regulate high-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles. This author aims to fortify legal frameworks based on technological advances.

I. Introduction
II. The Jurisprudential Status of High-altitude Balloonsin International Law
    A. Introduction to the Regulatory Framework
    B. The Chicago Convention and its Limitations
    C. The UN General Assembly’s Principles on Remote Sensing
    D. Revisiting the Bogotá Declaration: A Jurisprudential Inquiry into Unmanned Aerial Systems and High-altitude Balloons
    E. The Need for a Comprehensive International Legal Framework
III. Responses to High-altitude Balloons EnteringForeign Airspace: A Legal Perspective
    A. Case Studies of High-altitude Balloons Intruding into VariousCountries
    B. The Conundrum of International Law’s Applicability in theContext of High-altitude Balloons: An Interdisciplinary Inquiry
    C. The Legal Quagmire Surrounding High-altitude Balloons: ACall for Definitional Clarity and Updated International Norms
    D. The Complexities of Exercising Self-Defense Rights in theContext of High-Altitude Balloons: A Multifaceted LegalInquiry
IV. The Significance of Determining the Status of High-altitude Balloons
    A. The Nature of High-altitude Balloons: A Balloon or a System?
    B. The Military Aspect: Auxiliary or Combatant?
    C. The Status of Non-military Operators
    D. Is Intelligence Gathering Sovereign Violation? A Multidimensional Analysis
V. Conclusion

• Jhih-Siang Liu(Assistant Professor of the Graduate Institute of China Military Affair Studies, National Defense University, Taiwan. B.A./M.A. (Nat’l Defense U.-Taiwan), Ph.D. (Nat’l Taiwan Normal U.))