(Kyiv) The Pentagon on Thursday released footage of what it claims is a Russian plane pouring fuel on a US Air Force surveillance drone and cutting off the drone’s propeller in international airspace over the Black Sea.
The 42-second video shows a Russian Su-27 approaching the rear of the MQ-9 drone and beginning to spill fuel as it passes, the Pentagon said. The fuel dump appears to be intended to blind the drone’s optical instruments and knock it out of the area.
During a second approach, the same plane or another Russian fighter that was following the MQ-9 struck the drone’s propeller, damaging one of the blades, according to the US military.
Washington said it abandoned the MQ-9 Reaper at sea after what it described as a dangerous interception of the drone by the Russian fighter.
The video excerpt released by the Pentagon does not show the events leading up to or following the apparent confrontation.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley spoke with their Russian counterparts about the downing of the US drone following the clash with the planes of Russian hunts.
The talks with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the Russian General Staff General Valery Gerasimov were the first since October.
While attempted interception is not uncommon, the incident in the context of the war in Ukraine has raised concerns about the risk of the United States and Russia moving closer to a direct conflict.
The fact that senior military and defense officials from both countries spoke so soon after the encounter over the Black Sea underscored the seriousness of the incident.
The Russian Ministry of Defense indicated in its account of the conversation with Mr. Austin that Mr. Shoigu had accused the United States of having provoked the incident by ignoring the flight restrictions imposed by the Kremlin because of its military operations in Ukraine.
Russia also blamed “the intensification of intelligence activities against the interests of the Russian Federation”.
Such US actions “risk leading to an escalation of the situation in the Black Sea region”, the Russian Defense Ministry said, warning that Moscow will “respond appropriately to all provocations”.
The MQ-9, which has a wingspan of 20 meters, includes a ground control station and satellite equipment. It is capable of carrying ammunition, but Pentagon spokesman Air Force Gen. Pat Ryder would not comment on whether the downed drone was armed.
Air Brigadier General Pat Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, said the incident occurred at 7:03 a.m. Central European Time (2:03 a.m. Montreal time) over international waters. and well away from Ukraine, after Russian planes flew close to the drone for 30-40 minutes.
The U.S. has not recovered the downed drone, the U.S. Air Force said in a statement, and neither has Russia, Ryder said. Russian officials announced on Wednesday that they would try to recover fragments of the MQ-9 from the Black Sea.
US authorities have left open the possibility of trying to recover parts of the drone, which cost $32 million and crashed in waters between 1,200 and 1,500 m deep.
Other US officials have said the United States has no military vessels in the area and is unlikely to seek recovery of the debris.
They, however, expressed confidence that there would be nothing of military value left on the drone if Russia managed to recover the wreckage.
