An incident occurred in international airspace over the Black Sea: Apparently, an American drone collided with a Russian jet.
The crash of a US reconnaissance drone over the Black Sea has further intensified tensions between Washington and Moscow. The US government blamed Russia for the crash on Tuesday and summoned the Russian ambassador to Washington. For its part, Moscow has denied responsibility for the crash of the MQ-9 Reaper drone.
According to US information, the US drone crashed after a collision with a Russian fighter jet over the Black Sea. Two Russian Su-27 fighter jets intercepted the drone in a “dangerous and unprofessional” manner over international waters on Tuesday morning, said the US Armed Forces’ Regional Europe Headquarters in Stuttgart (EUCOM).
One of the fighter jets touched the propeller of the drone. Because of this damage, the United States then had to shoot down the drone itself, it is said. The Ukraine and the Crimean Peninsula, annexed by Russia, are located on the Black Sea.
US wants to summon Russian ambassador
“Our MQ-9 aircraft was performing routine operations in international airspace when it was intercepted and rammed by a Russian aircraft,” said US Air Force General James Hecker. “This resulted in the crash and complete loss of the MQ-9.” Because of the “dangerous and unprofessional” actions of the Russians, the Russian fighter jet almost crashed.
Eucom explained that before the collision, the Su-27s had already dumped fuel on the drone and were flying in front of the unmanned vehicle. “This incident shows a lack of competence in addition to being dangerous and unprofessional.”
Moscow denies responsibility
The Russian Defense Ministry has denied any responsibility for the drone crash. The drone was neither shot at nor attacked in any other way, according to a statement distributed by the state agency TASS.
A Russian Air Force alarm squad was deployed to identify an unknown intruder over the Black Sea. During a sharp evasive maneuver, the drone rapidly lost altitude and fell into the sea, according to the Russian military. “The Russian warplanes did not use any onboard weapons, did not come into contact with the UAV and returned safely to their home base.”
Russian ambassador to be convened
Diplomatically, the incident has its first consequences. US State Department spokesman Ned Price said Tuesday night that the United States will convene the Russian ambassador. In addition, Chris Cavoli, NATO’s supreme military commander, informed the allies about the collision over the Black Sea.
In Washington, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Russia’s actions were “reckless”. He added that US drones are repeatedly intercepted by Russian fighter jets. But this incident was of a different nature.
Eucom said the incident is one in a “series of dangerous actions by Russian pilots interacting with US and Allied aircraft in international airspace.” These “aggressive acts” are dangerous and could also lead to “unintentional escalations,” Eucom said.
NATO relies on diplomatic channels
NATO diplomats in Brussels said they did not expect an escalation after the incident. A Western military official told AFP news agency that diplomatic channels between Russia and the US are likely to be activated. “I assume that diplomatic channels will mitigate that.”
The Black Sea includes Ukraine, against which Russia is at war, and the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia has annexed. The US has long been flying reconnaissance flights over the Black Sea, observing Russian naval units.
Reaper drones can be used for surveillance flights, but also for missile and laser-guided bomb attacks. In recent years, the US armed forces have lost several drones of this type – in crashes or enemy fire.
