The Russian ambassador to the US, Anatoly Antonov, was called in for a consultation with the State Department, but before that he justified the actions of the Russian pilots.
Tension escalated between Washington and Moscow after a Russian fighter and an American combat drone collided, which led to the latter’s forced shooting down in the Black Sea. The US has denied that it was an accident. Moscow dismisses it as “provocative”, while the White House calls it “reckless and unsafe”.
Washington and Moscow both blame each other for the downing of the drone
Pat said, “We again saw fighter jets dropping fuel on the UAV and they came so close that they damaged the propeller of the MQ-9 combat drone. Due to the damage, it crashed into the Black Sea.” Ryder, Pentagon press secretary.
The Russian ambassador to the US was summoned for consultations to explain the interception on the Black Sea
Anatoly Antonov, the Russian ambassador to the US, was summoned to the State Department, but not before justifying the Russian pilots’ actions: “This drone can carry 1,700 kg of explosives. That drone can carry some bombs. You’ll see that.” What if the United States sees that Russian drone very close to, for example, San Francisco or New York, what would be the United States’ response? That’s clear to me.”
Downed MQ-9, a drone that can be armed and is designed for surveillance
The interception of American aircraft by Russian aircraft over the Black Sea is not uncommon. The Pentagon considers this serious and has warned that such action could lead to miscalculations and unexpected escalation.
