Russian military jets and US destroyer clash in Black Sea

Russian military jets and US destroyer clash in Black Sea



Russian military jets and US destroyer clash in Black Sea 'posing danger to stability'

Russia has scrambled military jets in response to an American navy destroyer which, it has been reported in Russian media, was acting “aggressively” in the Black Sea.

The Russian defence minister, speaking at a security summit in Singapore, said US missile ships operating near Moscow’s territorial waters “pose a danger to strategic stability” between the two countries.

State news service RIA Novosti quoted a military source as saying the USS Ross was sighted heading straight for Russian waters after leaving the Romanian port of Costanta on Saturday.

“The crew of the ship acted provocatively and aggressively, which concerned the operators of monitoring stations and ships of the Black Sea Fleet,” RIA reported.

“Scrambled Su-24 attack aircraft demonstrated a readiness to forcibly prevent border violations and defend the interests of the country,” the source was quoted as saying.

In a statement, the Pentagon’s spokeswoman Eileen Lainez confirmed the incident but said that the USS Ross had been “well within international waters at all times, performing routine operations”.