Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has warned the United States that Moscow will take “countermeasures” against further drone flights over part of the Black Sea after an incident last week in which a Russian plane intercepted a US drone, state media reported Wednesday.
“We warn them not to play on their nerves and test our patience,” Ryabkov said, according to state news agency RIA Novosti.
Referring to the incident last week, he said the US drone was “in a zone where we have introduced a special regime related to conducting military exercises”.
Russia’s security would be ensured “by all available means,” he added, and “no U.S. drones, whether reconnaissance, strike, strategic or any other kind,” would “better their determination to can shake”.
Some background: DailyExpertNews reported on Tuesday that the US is allowing surveillance drones to fly further south over the Black Sea after a Russian plane collided with a US drone last week, citing two US officials.
The drone flights have remained in international airspace, but since the collision between one of the Russian jets and the MQ-9 Reaper drone last Tuesday, the US has moved its drone flights further away from the airspace around the Crimean peninsula and eastern parts of the Black Sea. Sea.
One of the officials said the routes are part of an effort “not to be too provocative” as the Biden administration remains cautious to avoid an incident that could potentially escalate into direct conflict between US and Russian troops.
The official said drone flights would continue this way “for now”, but added that there is already “an appetite” to return to routes closer to Russian territory. The officials also said Russia could try to unilaterally declare a broader airspace closure around southern and eastern Ukraine in an attempt to force U.S. drone flights further away.