The drone that the US navy stated was forced down over the Black Sea by a Russian fighter jet has not been recovered — and it could by no means be, in accordance with John Kirby, coordinator for strategic communications on the Nationwide Safety Council.
“I am undecided that we’ll have the ability to get well it. I imply, the place it fell into the Black Sea, very, very deep water. We’re nonetheless assessing whether or not there may be any restoration effort mounted. There might not be,” Kirby instructed CNN.
“We did the very best we might to reduce any intelligence worth that may come from any person else getting their arms on that drone,” he added.
When pressed additional, Kirby stated, “I definitely cannot communicate for Russian efforts or what they might or might not be attempting to take off the floor of the water. I can simply let you know that we’re nonetheless assessing that state of affairs ourselves.”
One of many Russian jets deliberately flew in entrance of and dumped gas on the unmanned drone a number of instances, an announcement from US European Command stated. The plane then hit the propeller of the drone, prompting US forces to carry the MQ-9 drone down in worldwide waters.
Kirby reiterated it’s “not unusual” for Russian jets to attempt to intercept or harass US drones.
The Russian Ministry of Protection has denied the Russian jet had come into contact with the drone in an announcement on Tuesday, saying the fighter jets “scrambled to establish the intruder” after detecting it over the Black Sea, including that the drone “went into an unguided flight with a lack of altitude.”
Kirby stated on Wednesday morning: “To begin with, they do not belong in Ukraine. Secondly, they definitely do not belong in Crimea. And we had been flying, once more, effectively outdoors of the airspace that was, that is claimed by Ukraine or another nation. The Black Sea does not belong to Russia. … We’ll proceed to function, once more, in full in accordance with worldwide legislation.”
