US-Russia drone-jet crash: Biden's aide speaks to Putin's minister

A day after USA and Russia came closest to direct conflict since the Ukraine war began, American Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke to his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu.

Austin and Shoigu on 15 March 2023 discussed the encounter between a Russian jet and a US surveillance drone over the Black Sea a day earlier.

Washington had claimed that the Russian jet struck the drone, after which it had to be brought down, while Moscow denied the charges, claiming that the drone entered an off-limits area.

Following the phone conversation, the US Defense Secretary said that global powers need to be "models of transparency and communication", and that American forces will continue to operate wherever international law allows.

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