Moscow: Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov has directed the army’s General Staff to propose measures for swiftly responding to “provocations” by U.S. strategic drones operating over the Black Sea, the defence ministry announced on Friday.
According to a statement from the ministry, there has been observed an increase in activity by U.S. drones in the region, conducting reconnaissance and gathering targeting data for high-precision Western weapons used by Ukraine against Russian installations.
“This demonstrates the increasing involvement of the United States and NATO countries in the conflict in Ukraine on the side of the Kyiv regime,” the defence ministry stated.
“Such flights multiply the likelihood of airspace incidents with Russian aircraft, which increases the risk of a direct confrontation between the (NATO) alliance and the Russian Federation.”
Also Read | Indonesia Cyberattack: Government Data Unbacked Amidst Ransomware Crisis
The ministry emphasized that NATO nations would bear responsibility for any such incidents.
The statement did not explicitly reference Crimea, the Black Sea region annexed by Moscow from Ukraine in 2014. However, Russian military installations in Crimea have faced repeated attacks from Ukrainian forces, including the use of Western-supplied missiles.
