General David Berger, commandant of the Marine Corps, said that this type of collision is his greatest concern, both in that area of Europe as well as in the Pacific. The Black Sea lies between Europe and Asia and is bordered by Russia and Ukraine among other countries. We’re going to continue to fly and operate in international airspace over international waters. ‘If the message is that they want to deter or dissuade us from flying, and operating in international airspace, over the Black Sea, then that message will fail,’ he added. Mr Kirby insisted the collision would not deter the US from continuing missions in the area. He added that Moscow wants ‘pragmatic’ ties with Washington, adding ‘we don’t want any confrontation between the US and Russia’. Speaking after meeting with US Assistant Secretary of State for Europe Karen Donfried, Mr Antonov insisted the Russian warplanes didn’t use their weapons or hit the American drone. Russia’s ambassador to Washington, Anatoly Antonov, described the drone flight as a ‘provocation’ and argued there was no reason for US military aircraft and warships to be near Russia’s borders. ‘The Russian fighters didn’t use their weapons, didn’t come into contact with the unmanned aerial vehicle, and they safely returned to their base.’ ‘As a result of a sharp manoeuvre, the MQ-9 drone went into unguided flight with a loss of altitude and crashed into the water,’ it added.

It said the drone was flying over the Black Sea near Crimea and intruded into an area declared off limits by the Kremlin as part of Vladimir Putin’s ‘special military operation’, causing the military to scramble jets to intercept it. Russia’s defence ministry denied its jets had come into contact with the US drone, claiming instead that it crashed due to ‘sharp manoeuvring’.

Sky zone prices groupon