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The United States is ramping up strategic drone operations over the Black Sea, aiming to monitor and target precision weapons supplied to Ukraine’s armed forces, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
“This highlights the growing involvement of the US and NATO in the Ukraine conflict, siding with the Kyiv regime. Such flights significantly heighten the likelihood of airspace incidents with Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft, escalating the risk of a direct confrontation between the alliance and Russia. NATO countries will bear responsibility for this,” the ministry stated.
In response, Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov has directed the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces to prepare proposals for swift actions against what they term US “provocations” involving drone flights over the Black Sea.
Recently, the skies over the Black Sea have been quieter, at least according to the Russian Ministry of Defense, which has not reported any US drones in the area for several months. However, things ramped up on June 23 when RIA Novosti, using data from Flightradar24, revealed that an American RQ-4B Global Hawk reconnaissance drone was flying over the Black Sea during a missile attack on Sevastopol. The Russian Defense Ministry believes that American specialists operated long-range ATACMS missiles during this attack, using gathered intelligence.
Just a day later, on June 24, Russian Telegram channels, including Fighterbomber, buzzed with reports that a US Global Hawk drone had been shot down over the Black Sea. Despite the chatter, neither US nor Russian officials have officially confirmed this, and the Kremlin has refrained from commenting.
Back in March 2023, the incident with a US MQ-9 Reaper drone crashing into the Black Sea made headlines. According to the US European Command, the drone was on a routine mission when it was intercepted by a Russian aircraft, leading to a mid-air collision. The Russian Defense Ministry countered this by denying any contact between their fighter jet and the drone, citing a violation of airspace rules instead.
After the incident, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin affirmed that the United States would maintain its flight operations wherever international law permits. He also emphasized that Russian military aircraft must conduct themselves safely and professionally.
BULGARIAN MILTARY