A US drone was downed over the Black Sea, and conflicting explanations have been given by the US and Russia, while Ukraine’s foreign minister says such incidents will continue until Russia leaves Crimea.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister said that incidents like the downing of a US drone in the Black Sea are inevitable until Russia leaves Crimea. The US and Russia have given different explanations for the incident. The US stated that the drone was brought down after a Russian jet clipped its propeller and made it unworkable. However, Russia denied any contact with the drone and said it crashed after a “sharp maneuver” while flying with its transponders off. Since the annexation of Crimea in 2014, tensions have escalated in the Black Sea, and the US and UK have increased surveillance flights in international airspace.