In the incident, the US Navy's EP-3 Aries patrol aircraft flew over international waters in the Black Sea and was blocked by a Russian Su-27 fighter jet, forcing it to turn around. The video shows the Su-27 passing in front of the Aries camera.
The Russian Defense Ministry said the interception was necessary to prevent EP-3 Aries from violating Russian airspace. "The fighter jets have reported the discovery of a US reconnaissance aircraft being escorted by a reconnaissance aircraft. The force has prevented the above aircraft from violating Russian airspace while still taking all necessary security measures," Sputnik quoted the Russian Defense Ministry as saying.
The US State Department condemned Moscow's interception as a violation of international law, accusing Russia of harassing US aircraft in international waters.
"While US aircraft are operating in compliance with international law, the Russian side has seriously violated current agreements and international law. In this case is the 1972 Agreement for Prevention of Sea incidents (INCSEA)," said US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.
"We call on Russia to stop unsafe actions that increase the risk of errors, endanger crew on both sides and cause air collisions," Ms. Heather Nauert emphasized, calling the incident "the latest example of Russia's military activities not complying with international rules and agreements".
In addition, the US Navy in Europe-Cua Phi also accused Russian aircraft to create a dangerous situation for the interceptor on January 29 of the Su-27 with EP-3 Aries. "This interaction is determined to be unsafe due to the Su-27 close to 1.5m and cut directly through the flight of the EP-3, causing the EP-3 to fly through the SU-27 smoke trailer. The interaction process lasts 2 hours and 40 minutes."
Meanwhile, Moscow denied the accusation, asserting that the Su-27 fighter jet conducted all flights in accordance with international rules on airspace use and that there were no unusual incidents during the interception of the US plane.
