KYIV, Ukraine — The Pentagon has released footage of what it says is a Russian aircraft conducting an unsafe intercept of a U.S. Air Force surveillance drone in international airspace over the Black Sea.
The 42-second video, released Thursday, shows a Russian Su-27 approaching the back of the MQ-9 drone and beginning to release fuel as it passes, the Pentagon said.
The U.S. military said it ditched the MQ-9 Reaper in the sea on Tuesday after the Russian fighter jet poured fuel on the unmanned aerial vehicle, in an apparent attempt to blind its optical instruments and drive it out of the area, and then struck its propeller.
The released excerpt does not show events before or after the apparent fuel-dumping confrontation.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley have spoken to their Russian counterparts about the destruction of the U.S. drone following the encounter with Russian fighter jets.
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This photo taken from video released on Thursday, March 16, 2023, shows a Russian Su-27 approaching the back of the MQ-9 drone and beginning to release fuel as it passes, over the Black Sea, the Pentagon said.
The calls with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Russian General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov on Wednesday were the first since October.
While intercept attempts are not uncommon, the incident amid the war in Ukraine has raised concerns it could bring the United States and Russia closer to direct conflict.
That the two countries' top defense and military leaders were talking so soon after the encounter over the Black Sea underscored its seriousness.
The Russian Defense Ministry said in its report of the call with Austin that Shoigu accused the U.S. of provoking the incident by ignoring flight restrictions the Kremlin had imposed because of its military operations in Ukraine.
Russia also blamed "the intensification of intelligence activities against the interests of the Russian Federation."
Such U.S. actions "are fraught with escalation of the situation in the Black Sea area," the Defense Ministry said, warning that Russia "will respond in kind to all provocations."
In liberated Ukraine city, civilians still pay price of war
FILE - An operating light hangs from the ceiling of the destroyed surgery section of the hospital in Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File)
FILE - Ukrainian doctor Yurii Kuznetsov speaks to land mine victim Oleksandr Kolisnyk at the hospital in Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File)
FILE - Ukrainian doctor Yurii Kuznetsov pauses in the destroyed surgery section of the hospital in Izium, Ukraine, Saturday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File)
Land mine victim Oleksandr Rabenko, 66 years-old, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press as Murzik, his cat, approaches, at his son's home on the outskirts of Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
A destroyed tank is backdropped by homes with the letter Z, used by Russian troops to mark their vehicles, sprayed on the walls, near the village of Kamyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Andrii Cherednichenko, 50, who was injured after stepping on a land mine, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in his home village of Kamyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
A sign that reads "Mines" is placed on the sife of the road in the village of Kamyanka, on the outskirts of Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Land mine victim Oleksandr Rabenko, 66 years-old, pauses during an interview with the Associated Press as Murzik, his cat, touches his face on the outskirts of Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
FILE- A destroyed tank lies by the side of the road near the village of Kamyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
A sign that reads "Mines" is placed on the side of the road in the village of Kamyanka, on the outskirts of Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
A sign that reads "Mines" is placed on the sife of the road in the village of Kamyanka, on the outskirts of Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Andrii Cherednichenko, 50, who was injured after stepping on a land mine, walks on a snowy path in Kamyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
FILE- Andrii Cherednichenko, 50, who was injured after stepping on a land mine, stands backdropped by the ruins of his home, in Kamyanka, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Land mine victim Oleksandr Rabenko, 66 years-old, speaks during an interview with the Associated Press as Murzik, his cat, sits beside him at his son's home on the outskirts of Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Residents walk by a sign that reads "Mines", warning of the potential presence of petal mines, as they approach the hospital in Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Land mine victim Vasily Hrushka, 65 years-old, wipes his eye during an interview with the Associated Press on the outskirts of Izium, Ukraine, Sunday, Feb. 19, 2023. In this war-scarred city in Ukraine's northeast, residents scrutinize every step for land mines. The brutality of the Russian invasion in this one-time strategic supply hub for Russian troops counts among the most horrific of the war, which entered its second year last month. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
