Throughout the month of July, Russian fighter jets harassed US military drones over Syria on a regular basis. This week, one of these incidents resulted in an American aircraft being damaged.
Angered by the frequent occurrences, US officials have condemned Moscow’s pilots for their risky and irresponsible actions and have accused Moscow of meddling with combat drone operations during high-profile counterterrorism missions.
US Aircraft Counterterrorism Operations in Syria
The increase in aggressive conduct, according to military experts, has a number of causes, including Russia’s overcompensation for its military shortfalls in Ukraine and a desire to flex its muscles in a region where it still has some degree of strength.
According to Nicholas Lokker, a Russian foreign policy expert at the Center for a New American Security, or CNAS, Russia views its efforts in Syria as one area that actually speaks to Russian might and influence on the world stage. Russia and the US both keep troops stationed in Syria.
While Moscow supports the ruthless dictatorship in the country’s protracted civil war, Washington has around 900 troops on the ground conducting counterterrorism operations against the Islamic State.
The two nations have successfully avoided conflicts there for years while pursuing their individual interests. However, following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, relations between Washington and Moscow reached an all-time low.
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Russian Fighter’s Dangerous Flight
Since then, it hasn’t gotten any worse, and there are no indications that things will change very soon. Tensions between the two sides have increased as a result of recent air combat over Syria.
On a counterterrorism mission on Sunday, a Russian Su-35 fighter jet flew meters from a US MQ-9 Reaper drone and fired flares above the American aircraft.
The crew of the MQ-9, which was being remotely piloted, managed to safely return the drone to base despite one of the flares damaging its propeller.
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