US military drone collides with Russian fighter jet over Black Sea, Moscow denies it

However, the defense ministry of Russia stated that their fighter jets did not have any interaction with a U.S. drone that crashed into the Black Sea. It claimed that the drone crashed as a result of "sharp maneuvering."

"The Russian fighters did not use their onboard weapons, did not come into contact with the UAV and returned safely to their home airfield," the defence ministry said.

Earlier, the U.S. military stated that prior to the collision, the Russian fighter jets engaged in unsafe maneuvers, including dumping fuel on the MQ-9 several times in an attempt to blind or damage it. Furthermore, the fighter jets flew in front of the unmanned drone, posing a threat to its safety.

"Our MQ-9 aircraft was conducting routine operations in international airspace when it was intercepted and hit by a Russian aircraft, resulting in a crash and complete loss of the MQ-9," U.S. Air Force General James Hecker, who oversees the U.S. Air Force in the region, said in a statement.

"In fact, this unsafe and unprofessional act by the Russians nearly caused both aircraft to crash."

The U.S. military stated that this incident is part of a dangerous pattern of behavior by Russian pilots who have been operating in close proximity to aircraft flown by the U.S. and its allies, particularly over the Black Sea. This region, which lies between Europe and Asia, is bordered by several countries including Russia and Ukraine.

Although the United States is not currently deploying warships in the Black Sea, it has regularly been conducting surveillance operations using aircraft in and around the region.

The White House acknowledged that the downing of the drone was a unique incident and has stated that it will be directly addressed by the State Department with their Russian counterparts.

"We have been flying over that airspace consistently now for a year … and we’re going to continue to do that," said White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby.

"We don’t need to have some sort of check-in with the Russians before we fly in international airspace. There’s no requirement to do that nor do we do it," Kirby added.