Russian jet collision a ‘wake-up call to isolationists,’ top Armed Services Republican says
Ryan King
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Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Roger Wicker (R-MS) declared on Tuesday that a Russian fighter jet collision that effectively downed a U.S. drone should be a “wake-up call to isolationists.”
Earlier in the day, one of two Russian Su-27 jets collided with the propeller of an MQ-9 Reaper drone during an attempted intercept over the Black Sea, causing a loss of the unmanned aircraft, according to U.S. military officials. Wicker blasted Moscow over the incident but also took a jab at politicians in his own party calling for less U.S. involvement in Russia‘s war against Ukraine.
RUSSIAN AIRCRAFT COLLIDES WITH UNMANNED US DRONE OVER THE BLACK SEA
“This brazen act by Russian pilots against an American aircraft flying in international airspace makes clear that Vladimir Putin is an adversary,” Wicker said in a statement. “This incident should serve as a wake-up call to isolationists in the United States that it is in our national interest to treat Putin as the threat he truly is.”
Republicans have splintered over how best to approach Russia, with some denouncing the “blank check” that has been extended to Ukraine and others adamant about standing behind the U.S. ally.
On Monday, Fox News host Tucker Carlson aired answers from 2024 presidential hopefuls to a questionnaire he prepared for them on Ukraine, revealing that many were apathetic or even opposed to the United States bolstering support for the country.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) argued that “becoming further entangled in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia” is not a vital American national strategic interest, while former President Donald Trump stressed, “Properly executed, this terrible and tragic War, a War that never should have started in the first place, will come to a speedy end.”
https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1635442071073955841?s=20
Wicker seemingly rebutted those responses to continued U.S. support for Ukraine. Some of his colleagues, such as Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC), have similarly pushed back against the remarks.
“Putin wants nothing more than for incidents like these to push the United States away from our support of Ukraine and prevent us from rolling back his destructive policies. We must choose to project strength against our adversary, not appease this dictator with words or so-called ‘de-escalation,'” Wicker added.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) similarly condemned Russia’s apparent aggression.
“This intercept was so dangerous and so brazen that the U.S. Air Force was forced to crash their drone into international waters. It is another reckless act by President Putin and his military, and I want to tell Mr. Putin to stop this behavior before you are the cause of an unintended escalation,” he said in remarks on the Senate floor.
“We have seen this behavior from the Russian military before, and it will not deter the United States from conducting operations over the Black Sea,” he added.
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Military officials have echoed Schumer’s vow that the U.S. will not be deterred from conducting operations in the region.
“Our MQ-9 aircraft was conducting routine operations in international airspace when it was intercepted and hit by a Russian aircraft, resulting in a crash and complete loss of the MQ-9,” U.S. Air Force Gen. James B. Hecker, the commander of U.S. Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa, said. “U.S. and Allied aircraft will continue to operate in international airspace.”