WASHINGTON – In a rare move, the Pentagon on Thursday released a declassified video showing Russia’s intercept of a United States military surveillance drone downed over the Black Sea two days ago.
It was the first direct US-Russian incident since the Ukraine war began, worsening already tense relations between Washington and Moscow.
In the video, a Russian Su-27 fighter jet is seen coming very close to the US MQ-9 drone and dumping fuel near it.
US officials say it was an apparent effort to damage the American aircraft as it flew over the Black Sea.
It also shows the loss of the video feed after another close Russian manoeuvre, which the Pentagon says resulted from the Russian jet’s collision with the drone.
It ends with images of the drone’s damaged propeller, which the Pentagon says resulted from the collision, making the aircraft inoperable.
The video, which is about 40sec long, has been edited by the US military for length but shows events in a sequential order, the Pentagon said.
Russia has denied US accusations that its jet acted recklessly in the incident.
It instead blamed “sharp manoeuvering” by the drone for the crash, claiming its jet did not make contact.
The incident over international waters was a reminder of the risk of direct confrontation between the US and Russia over Ukraine.
Moscow invaded Ukraine more than a year ago and Western allies have supported the Kyiv government with intelligence and weapons.
A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Russian ships had been seen near the area where the drone had crashed, though they did not appear to have recovered any parts of the drone yet.
It was not clear if they were still in the area.
Washington has said that any recovery efforts relating to the drone would be difficult because of the depth of water in the region. It said it has taken measures to ensure that no sensitive information can be gleaned from the remains of the drone.
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMicmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnN0cmFpdHN0aW1lcy5jb20vd29ybGQvdW5pdGVkLXN0YXRlcy9wZW50YWdvbi1yZWxlYXNlcy1kZS1jbGFzc2lmaWVkLXZpZGVvLW9mLWJsYWNrLXNlYS1kcm9uZS1pbmNpZGVudNIBAA?oc=5
2023-03-16 11:27:26Z
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