Russia today (Wednesday) called on the United States to stop "hostile" flights near its borders, following the incident in the skies over the Black Sea yesterday, during which an American drone was intercepted by Russian fighter jets. Washington accused Moscow of reckless conduct and declared that they would continue to operate in the area near the centers of fighting in Ukraine.
"We estimate that the United States will refrain from further speculation in the media and will stop flights near Russia's borders," Russian Ambassador to Washington, Anatoly Antonov, wrote on Telegram, who was summoned yesterday for a clarification call. "We see any action in which American weapons are used as an act of open hostility."
According to the US military, the incident was decided when a Russian fighter jet dumped fuel on an American MQ-9 Reaper drone and then collided with it, causing it to crash. The US military described it as a "reckless" maneuver. The US Army European Command said two fighter jets Russian Sukhoi-27 intercepted the drone while it was flying over international waters, and one of them cut off its propeller.
Battle of versions between Washington and Moscow.
MQ-9 Reaper UAV (Photo: GettyImages)
Russia's Ministry of Defense gave a different version.
According to him, fighter jets were indeed launched at the drone as it passed over the Black Sea, but he denied that they caused it to crash. In Moscow, they claimed that the drone was flying near the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed by Ukraine in 2014, and approached "the border of Russia ".
The spokesman for the National Security Council at the White House, John Kirby, said that the drone did not pose a threat to anyone and was operating in international airspace. He said that the United States will continue to fly and operate in the skies of the Black Sea and protect its interests in the region. "We do not need to
report to the Russians when we fly in the skies of the Black Sea," Kirby said.
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