Washington:
Russian jets on Thursday harassed US drones participating in operations against the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria for the second time in 24 hours, a US commander said.
The “Moscow military aircraft engaged in unsafe and unprofessional behavior at 9:30 a.m. local time Thursday while interacting with U.S. MQ-9 drones,” Air Force Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich said in a statement.
The planes “dropped flares in front of the drones and flew dangerously close, endangering the safety of all aircraft involved,” he said.
The previous day, Grynkewich said Russian jets also dropped flares for US MQ-9s as a pilot turned on their plane’s afterburner for a drone.
Earlier this year, the United States said a Russian fighter jet cut the propeller of a drone operating over the Black Sea, causing it to crash. Moscow denied it was responsible.
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