BEIRUT—The U.S. military said that Russian fighter planes had "harassed" American drones over Syria for the third day in a row this week.
As both nations undertake ground and air patrols in Syria, tensions between Russian and American forces are not unusual. Over 1 million people have been injured and half a million people have died in Syria's 12-year conflict.
According to a statement from the U.S. military, the contact on Friday lasted for roughly two hours and involved three MQ-9 drones being "once again harassed" by Russian fighter jets as they flew over Syria.
“Russian aircraft flew 18 unprofessional close passes that caused the MQ-9s to react to avoid unsafe situations,” Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, head of U.S. Air Forces Central Command, said in a statement.
The Russian and Syrian forces have begun a six-day joint training exercise that finishes on Monday, according to Rear Adm. Oleg Gurinov, director of the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria, who made the announcement earlier in the week.
In remarks published earlier this week by Syrian state media, Mr. Gurinov said that Moscow is concerned about drone flights by the American-led coalition over northern Syria, calling them "systematic violations of protocols" intended to prevent military encounters.
A Russian military aircraft "engaged in unsafe and unprofessional behavior" as three U.S. military aircraft approached on Wednesday morning, causing the initial incident. According to the US military, MQ-9 drones were engaged in operations against the ISIS terrorist organization. The U.S. military claimed on Thursday that Russian fighter jets above Syria were flying "incredibly unsafe and unprofessionally" towards both French and American aircraft.
The United States and France are members of a global alliance against ISIS, which formerly ruled over the majority of Syria and Iraq and established a caliphate there. Despite being defeated in Syria and Iraq in less than two years and 2017, respectively, ISIS continues to carry out deadly attacks in both nations.
An American-led coalition drone assault on Friday claimed the life of a motorcycle-riding guy in northern Syria. The individual was an ISIS militant, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor.
Since entering the Syrian war in September 2015, Russia has contributed to shifting the balance of power in favor of troops loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad. Attacks by Russian airplanes continue targeting the last significant rebel stronghold in northwest Syria.
There are at least 900 American soldiers and an unspecified number of contractors working alongside the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in Syria on any given day.
“We continue to encourage Russia to return to the established norms of a professional Air Force so we can all return our focus to ensuring the enduring defeat of ISIS,” Mr. Grynkewich said.
Mr. Gurinov, the Russian officer, warned that the increase of “uncoordinated flights” for the coalition’s drones leads to escalation and “Russia is not responsible for the safety of these flights.”
