While the U.S. side announced that the U.S. drone collided and crashed after being sabotaged by Russian fighter jets, aides to Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized it as evidence of direct involvement in the military operation and strongly condemned the idea of recovering the drone and obtaining military secrets.
The U.S. military announced on the 14th that a Russian fighter jet interfered with a US Air Force reconnaissance drone that was flying in international airspace over the Black Sea facing southern Ukraine, collided with it, and the drone lost control and crashed into the sea.
In response, the Russian Defense Ministry denied that there were any clashes.
President Putin's aide, Secretary of the Security Council Patrushev, criticized the drone in Moscow on the 15th, saying, "This drone is evidence of the direct involvement of the United States in the military operation in Ukraine," and said that "we will strive to recover the fragments of the drone."
In addition, another aide to President Putin, Naryshkin, head of the Foreign Intelligence Service, strongly rebuked the U.S. side by stating, "We have the ability to recover and study drones," and indicated one after another the idea of recovering the crashed drones and obtaining military secrets.
On the other hand, in Bakhmut, a base on the Ukrainian side of Donetsk Oblast in eastern Ukraine, the battle between Russia and Ukraine is intensifying.
Ukrainian President Zelensky held a meeting of senior security officials on the 14th and reiterated his intention to defend Bakhmut and fight a thorough war, stating that "all commanders have shown a clear position, we will strengthen the current direction and inflict the greatest possible blow to the occupiers."
However, the Washington Post, a leading American newspaper, reported that many soldiers with a lot of combat experience have been killed and wounded by the Ukrainian army, and some people are questioning whether a large-scale reversal offensive can be carried out.
In addition, Western officials estimate the casualties of soldiers at 12,20 on the Ukrainian side and about <>,<> on the Russian side, and it seems that enormous damage has been inflicted on both sides.