MOSCOW, November 8. /TASS/. Washington’s accusations of Russian aviation’s “irresponsible” behavior above the Black Sea are nothing more than politically-motivated speculations, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told TASS on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, US Department of State Spokesperson Heather Nauert accused Russia of acting “recklessly” in the international airspace over the Black Sea. The spokesperson also called on Russia to stop what she described as “unsafe, irresponsible, and aggressive behavior.”
“Military professionals know that everything that we do [is done] with the highest possible level of preparations,” Ryabkov said. “That’s why Washington should avoid using this or that situation for political speculations and aggravation of tensions.”
“This foul play is evident for us, and we will keep exposing it. We call on the United States to scale back its ambitions and abstain from actions that do not really benefit security at the regional and even global level,” the Russian diplomat added.
According to Ryabkov, Moscow is doing its best to prevent any kind of incidents in territories where Russian and US warships and warplanes are conducting their activities.
“However, there is one question that we would like to be answered by our US partners: what is the goal of their presence so close to the Russian territory?” he said. “This question is becoming more and more important as we have no clue of the goals they pursue. We are not satisfied with excuses that the US Air Force and Navy are simply exercising their right to move freely in and above international waters.”
“We have to take care about our own security and, ultimately, US military commanders and political leaders are playing with fire when they order provocative actions to be carried out in the immediate vicinity of the Russian border. We, on our part, do nothing of this kind with regard to the United States,” Ryabkov said.
