Peskov: Contacts were established with the US regarding the drone, through the military and diplomats

MOSCOW, March 16 – RIA Novosti. Regarding the situation with the American drone, the press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov told reporters that contacts were held between military and diplomatic contacts.

The Russian Ministry of Defense previously reported that on the morning of March 14, an American MQ-9 unmanned aerial vehicle, whose transponders were turned off, violated the borders of the transitional regime zone to use the airspace over the Black Sea. According to the ministry’s statement, as the UAV was moving towards the Russian border in Crimea, Russian warplanes were lifted into the air to detect the intruder. The drone, which went into uncontrolled flight due to the sudden maneuver, lost altitude and fell into the water. The Russian Ministry of Defense emphasized that the Russian fighters did not come into contact with the MQ-9, did not use airborne weapons and returned safely to the main airspace.

“Communication channels have been activated, you know, there have been contacts through the army and the NGSH (Chief of the General Staff – ed.) and the Minister of Defense – they met. There were contacts over the diplomatic line,” Peskov said. While answering the question, it was also mentioned whether there was a “hot line” established between Russia and the USA during the Cold War.

On Wednesday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu spoke on the phone with Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin, the meeting took place on the initiative of the American side. Ministers focused on the incident with an American drone in the Black Sea. Later, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov also had a phone call with the Chief of the General Staff of the US Armed Forces, Mark Milley.