A jet flies by a civilian unmanned airship from China as it floats off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina, US, Feb 4, 2023. (Photo: Agencies)

China solemnly protests against the use of armed forces — an obvious overreaction — by the US "to attack a civilian unmanned airship from China," the Defense Ministry said on Sunday afternoon.

"We reserve the right to take necessary measures to handle similar situations," the ministry's spokesman Tan Kefei said in a statement.