Lloyd Austin and Russian counterpart speak after fighter jet hits US drone
Mike Brest
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Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin spoke with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu regarding the Russian fighter pilot who collided with a U.S. drone.
Two Russian Su-27 aircraft dumped fuel on a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 unmanned aircraft several times on Tuesday morning before one of them flew into its propeller over the Black Sea. The U.S. military was forced to crash land it into the water, and it’s unclear if it’ll be able to recover the drone.
RUSSIAN AIRCRAFT COLLIDES WITH UNMANNED US DRONE OVER THE BLACK SEA
Austin, in a press conference on Wednesday, said: “I just got off the phone with my Russian counterpart, Minister Shoigu. As I’ve said repeatedly, it’s important that great powers be models of transparency and communication.”
“The United States will fly and operate wherever international law allows,” he said. “Now we take any potential for escalation very seriously, and that’s why I believe it’s important to keep the lines of communication open. I think it’s really key that we’re able to pick up the phone and engage each other, and I think that that will help to prevent miscalculation going forward.”
Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the intercept was intentional, as was the reckless behavior, but said it’s unclear whether the pilot intended to connect with the U.S. drone. He also said he has a call scheduled with his Russian counterpart, Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov.
He also said it’ll take days for them to figure out whether the military will be able to recover it because the debris “probably sank to some significant depths.”
“On March 15, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III spoke by phone with Russian Minister of Defense Sergey Shoygu regarding recent unprofessional, dangerous, and reckless behavior by the Russian air force in international airspace over the Black Sea. Secretary Austin emphasized that the United States will continue to fly and to operate wherever international law allows,” Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said in a readout of the call.
This type of behavior from Russian pilots is becoming more common, though this is the first time a Russian pilot has crashed into a U.S. drone.
“This hazardous episode is part of a pattern of aggressive, risky, risky and unsafe actions by Russian pilots in international airspace,” America’s defense secretary said.
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State Department spokesman Ned Price described the incident as “a brazen violation of international law,” though he said the U.S. couldn’t “characterize” Russia’s motivations, adding: “In a sense, however, the motivations matter much less than what actually transpired, and that’s what we’re speaking to today.”
The U.S. summoned Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov, though he rebuked the allegation, while U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy conveyed a similar “strong message” to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Price said.