The reconnaissance mission of the MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) above the Black Sea was a provocation, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov has said.
“The aircraft was flying with its transponders off, and it entered the zone of the special military operation. It [the information about the zone] was made public via international channels. We, Russia, have warned everyone about it. I think this was a real provocation,” he told reporters after consultations at the US Department of State, where the diplomat was summoned over the incident.
“They provoked us to take a certain action, which would allow them to accuse Russia and the Russian military of being non-professional,” the Russian diplomat said, answering to a question from TASS.
