US Accuses Russia of ‘Harassing’ Drones in Syria

Facts

• The US Air Force on Wednesday released video footage it says shows Russian fighter jets flying dangerously close to several unmanned US drones over Syria, forcing them to fly evasive maneuvers.¹
• The Russian military aircraft were "harassing" three US MQ-9 drones on an undisclosed mission against the Islamic State (IS) in Syria, according to Air Force Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, who condemned the Russian pilot's "unsafe and unprofessional" conduct.²
• The footage shows Russian jets releasing several parachute flares in the drones' flight path, and a Russian pilot positioning his aircraft in front of an MQ-9 and turning on the afterburner, making it more difficult to control the drone.³
• Grynkewich said the pilots' actions threatened the safety of US and Russian forces, calling on the Russian military to "cease this reckless behavior" and adhere to the norms of conduct of a professional air force "so we can resume our focus on the enduring defeat of ISIS."⁴
• In a similar incident in March, Russian fighter jets forced down an Air Force MQ-9 drone over the Black Sea after intentionally and repeatedly dumping fuel on the aerial device. The jets eventually damaged the drone's propeller, according to the US military.⁵
• Washington maintains about 900 military personnel in northeastern Syria as part of a US-led anti-IS coalition that is under increasing pressure, including from Iran-backed forces opposed to the presence of Western troops in Iraq and Syria.⁶

Sources: ¹Al Jazeera, ²Guardian, ³Al Arabiya English, ⁴NBC, ⁵CNN, and ⁶The National.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Business Insider. The increasingly hostile actions of Russian pilots indicate growing weakness in the Russian military, which is pulling units out of Syria to redirect them into the Ukraine war. Moscow wants to signal its advantageous position in Syria to Washington and prompt America to withdraw. However, the fact that the US recently redeployed F-22 fighter jets to the Middle East shows that the West will not give in to Russian harassment tactics and will continue to lead the fight against terrorism.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Eurasian Times. While incidents of provocative behavior by Russian pilots are exaggerated in the media, the truth is that drones used by the US-led so-called "anti-terror coalition" are also flying aggressive maneuvers against the Russian military in Syria, thereby violating deconfliction protocols. There are also indications that the US military is training Islamist extremists to destabilize the Assad government.

Predictions