Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu has had telephone conversations with his American counterpart Lloyd Austin. The conversation took place at the initiative of the Pentagon, reported in the Russian military department.
The main attention was paid to the exchange of views on the causes and consequences of the incident with the American drone over the Black Sea, the Ministry of Defense said. During the conversation, Shoigu told Austin that the reason for the crash of the MQ-9 Reaper drone was the US military’s non-compliance with the restricted flight zone declared by Moscow.
In addition, the head of the Russian Defense Ministry noted that the presence of American drones off the coast of Crimea is provocative, which creates the prerequisites for an escalation of the situation.
Shoigu also told the Pentagon chief that Moscow “will continue to respond proportionately” to all actions such as the flight of US drones near Russia’s borders.
“At the same time, the largest nuclear powers should act as responsibly as possible, including maintaining military communication channels to discuss any crisis situation,” the Russian Defense Ministry’s press service said. in a press release.
In turn, Austin, following the results of the talks, said that US military aircraft would continue flying in international airspace, and “it is important that major powers be models of transparency and maintaining communications.”
“Russia must fly its military aircraft safely and professionally. The actions of Russian pilots in international airspace were risky and dangerous,” — said him, commenting on the incident over the Black Sea.
On the afternoon of March 15, National Security Council Strategic Communications Coordinator John Kirby informed CNN that the United States took steps to remotely destroy what was valuable on the MQ-9 drone that fell into the Black Sea.
He also doubted that the crashed drone would be detected. “The part of the Black Sea where he fell is very, very deep,” Kirby said. The United States has not yet decided whether it will make efforts to recover the wreckage of the drone, he said.
Drone crash in the Black Sea
The MQ-9 Reaper multipurpose drone crashed in the Black Sea on the morning of March 14. The Pentagon said it collapsed after a “dangerous and unprofessional interception” by two Russian Su-27 fighter jets.
According to the US Department of Defense, the planes repeatedly dumped fuel before colliding with the drone and flying past it “in a reckless and unprofessional manner”. One of the Su-27s crashed into an MQ-9 propeller, after which the US aircraft lost control and had to be flooded in international waters, the department said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said the MQ-9 fell as a result of its own sudden maneuver and Russian fighters did not come into contact with it.
After the incident, the US State Department protested to Russian Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov.
