A U.S. Air Force spy drone went down after colliding with a Russian jet over international waters in the Black Sea.
According to U.S.
officials, two Russian jets intercepted the MQ-9 Reaper drone and
dumped fuel on it before one of the aircraft "struck the propeller" of
the drone, bringing it down.
- Russian
jets have intercepted other U.S. aircraft over the Black Sea in recent
weeks, said National Security Council communications coordinator John
Kirby.
- However, the way they tried to bring the drone down on Tuesday was "unsafe, unprofessional, and reckless," Kirby said.
- The U.S. is analyzing if it is worth trying to recover the remains of the drone, giving how deep the Black Sea is.
- Following
the downing of the drone, the Russian ambassador to the U.S., Anatoly
Antonov, met with State Department officials in Washington, D.C.
- After the meeting, he said the Kremlin wants to avoid "unintended clashes or unintended incidents" with Washington.
Zoom Out:
- The U.S. started flying Reaper drones over the Black Sea before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
- Reaper drones can fly as high as 50,000 feet and are used for surveillance and intelligence gathering.
