The Russian military on a Su-27 fighter shot down an American MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Black Sea. This incident will not affect US defense support in any way.

This opinion was expressed on the air of Channel 24 by a military expert, Colonel of the Reserve of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Serhiy Grabsky. According to him, the States will continue to use such drones in the Black Sea to collect intelligence information.

“They are obliged to do this, having allied relations not only with Ukraine, but also with NATO countries. This is an element of the collective security of the Alliance. Yes, they will do it. These drones continue their work from Italian bases,” he said.

The incident will not affect the United States in any way.

Grabsky noted that the downing of the American MQ-9 Reaper drone would not affect US defense support in any way. However, according to the colonel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, this will affect the operational activities of Ukraine.

The military expert stressed that it is extremely important for Ukraine not to lose the channel for receiving information. He is also convinced that this incident will not be able to aggravate relations between Russia and the United States.

This will not affect the development of the situation, relations between the US and Russia, because they are at a low level. Further deterioration is simply impossible. Except for the direct entry of the United States into the war, but this is still far away, he believes.

Sergei Grabsky added that in Russia the pilot who “heroically” shot down a US drone on a Su-27 aircraft could be rewarded.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Putin awarded the title of Hero of Russia to this pilot, who “heroically” fought a piece of iron that could not answer him. He attacked a virtually unmanned target,” the military expert said.

How the Russians shot down a US drone over the Black Sea: watch the video

What we know about the drone incident

• On Tuesday evening, March 14, Russia rammed an American unmanned aerial vehicle over the Black Sea. Subsequently, the situation was commented by the representative of the US Department of Defense, Brigadier General of the Air Force Pat Ryder.
• Pat Ryder said that the Russian Su-27 made a very dangerous and unprofessional interception of an American UAV that was in international airspace. However, he also noted that as a result, not only the MQ-9 Reaper drone was damaged.
• At the same time, he stated that the drone operators were forced to decide to eliminate the drone after a collision with a Russian fighter, since damage to the MQ-9 propeller made it uncontrollable.
• The New York Times writes that the incident happened 120 kilometers from the temporarily occupied Crimea, when the UAV was conducting surveillance. According to an anonymous US defense official, in the early morning of March 14, an American drone took off from a military base in Romania in order to carry out a planned mission, which usually lasts from 9 to 10 hours.