Downing of US drone by Russian plane is deliberate Russian provocation - diplomat Ohryzko

He expressed this opinion on Espreso TV.

The diplomat commented on the incident that occurred on March 14 in international airspace over the Black Sea, where a Russian Su-27 hit an American MQ-9 drone.

"There is no doubt in my mind that this was a deliberate Russian provocation. That is, they knew what they were doing and understood that these are international waters and that everyone who can fly there has the right to do so. And the Americans are right to emphasize that these were traditional flights that were previously perceived more or less normally. Now, apparently, the Russians have decided to test the reaction in this way. In my opinion, the reaction is a bit weak," said the former Foreign Minister of Ukraine.

Volodymyr Ohryzko noted that such things should have been responded to much more forcefully, because Russia is a country that always tests how one will respond. If the response is tough and strong, the reaction will be clear.

"Let's remember how the Turks once shot down a Russian plane over the Black Sea, after which the planes disappeared for a certain period completely and never reappeared there. If the situation had been similar, that is, if those two Russian planes had ended up at the bottom of the Black Sea, then there would have been no more such incidents. So, I think the Americans are blowing on cold water, because this is the third similar situation. The first one was a missile that landed in Poland, the second one was a missile that flew into Romania, and now the shooting down of a valuable spy - these are all chains of the same game. So far, the West has been reacting very sluggishly to this, so the game continues," Ohryzko summarized.

• On March 14, a Russian Su-27 downed a US drone in international airspace over the Black Sea