The actions of a Russian fighter jet in the skies over Syria have endangered the lives of four crew members of a US reconnaissance plane, the Associated Press reported, citing unnamed US officials.
On July 16, a Russian Su-35 fighter jet “flew very close” to an American MS-12 reconnaissance aircraft, causing severe turbulence, the agency said. Officials did not specify how close the Russian fighter jet flew.
On the same day, Oleg Gurinov, deputy head of the Russian Center for Reconciliation of Syria, reported that aircraft, including MS-12W, of the US-led coalition violated Syrian airspace three times. The interception of the Russian pilot prevented the American crew from safely flying the plane, sources said. They called the incident “a new level of unsafe behavior that could lead to an accident or loss of life.”
A senior Pentagon official said the United States is considering several options to counter increased Russian activity in the skies over Syria, which it says has complicated the U.S. military’s efforts to attack the Islamic State group’s military command. The agency attributed the increased Russian military activity since March to growing cooperation between Moscow, Tehran and the Syrian government in an effort to force the US out of Syria.
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2023-07-18 10:22:00
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