Russian collision with drone won't deter U.S. missions, says national security spokesman John Kirby
CBSN
Russia may have acted aggressively and deliberately in forcing a U.S. surveillance drone to be ditched into the Black Sea, but these moves did not constitute an act of war, will not deter missions and will not lead to U.S. military escorts of future drone flights, top White House national security spokesman John Kirby told CBS News.
"This was a deliberate, aggressive, overly aggressive move by this pilot," Kirby told CBS News on this week's episode of "The Takeout."
Kirby spoke shortly after the Pentagon had released video of a Russian pilot's efforts to shower the drone with aviation fuel and a subsequent mid-air collision. The video confirmed Pentagon descriptions of the incident and undercut Russian assertions the drone was flying in an unstable manner.