July 6 (UPI) — The U.S. Central Command reported that three Russian fighters jets harassed U.S. drones in Syria, resulting in the need for evasive maneuvers by the American drones. These incidents have been labeled as unprofessional and dangerous by U.S. officials, highlighting an ongoing pattern of behavior by Russia in the Middle East.
During a mission targeting Islamic State locations on Wednesday, three U.S. MQ-9 drones experienced harassment from three Russian jets at around 10:40 a.m. The Russian jets dropped multiple parachute flares in front of the drones, forcing them to adjust their course.
Additionally, one of the Russian pilots deliberately positioned their jet in front of a drone and engaged the afterburner, limiting the drone operator’s ability to maneuver the U.S. aircraft.
A video lasting around one minute capturing the incident was shared on Twitter by the U.S. Air Force Central. The video identified the Russian jets involved as SU-35s.
Lieutenant General Alex Grynkewich, the commander of the Ninth Air Force and Combined Forces Air Component for CENTCOM, described the actions of the Russian pilots in a statement as “unsafe and unprofessional.”
Grynkewich stated, “These events represent another example of unprofessional and unsafe actions by Russian air forces operating in Syria, which threaten the safety of both U.S. and Russian forces.”
He continued, “We urge Russian forces in Syria to cease this reckless behavior and adhere to the standards of behavior expected of a professional air force so we can resume our focus on the enduring defeat of ISIS.”
This incident occurs within a context of increased tensions between the United States and Russia due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. It also follows several instances of near conflicts between the countries in the Syrian skies.
In March, Russian jets flew near a U.S. military base in Syria almost daily, as revealed by Grynkewich in an interview with NBC News.
These escalating incidents prompted U.S. Central Command to deploy F-22 Raptor fighter jets to the Middle East less than a month ago.
General Michael Kurilla, the commander of U.S. Central Command, stated in a statement on Wednesday, “Russian forces continue to display unsafe and unprofessional behavior in the air. Their regular violation of agreed-upon airspace deconfliction measures increases the risks of escalation or miscalculation.”
Russia, a supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, maintains a presence in the country and provides political and military assistance to the regime.
There are approximately 900 U.S. troops operating in Syria as part of the counter-IS Operation Inherent Resolve mission.
As both the United States and Russia operate in close proximity in Syria, they established a deconfliction channel to avoid inadvertent conflict, as mentioned in a Congressional Research Service report from November.
