Professor explains to us what happened on the Black Sea yesterday?
«A very simple thing: a pair of Russian Su27 jets repeatedly tried to set fire to the American drone flying in international space by dumping fuel on it. When the Russian pilot saw that the aircraft resisted, he made a sharp turn with the jet, hitting the drone and causing it to fall ».
Were there similar precedents that perhaps were not disclosed?
«No, it is a serious event that has never happened before and corresponds to a clear message of intimidation that the Russian armed forces wanted to send to the international community. An American aircraft, albeit unmanned, which was moving in international airspace was deliberately struck.
At this point the question everyone is asking is the following: is there a real fear of an escalation?
«To tell the truth, it has been since February 24, 2020 that we have been witnessing, hour after hour, an incredible, tragic and unpredictable escalation. The downing of the drone only demonstrates, if ever there was any more need, that the Russians have no interest in lowering the tone and initiating even the slightest dialogue with the West”.
And how will America react?
“America has already reacted. For the moment, it has not been intimidated and has made good its point by sending another drone back to the same international space over the Black Sea.
Where do Ukraine and Russia stand in the «men and ammunition» chapter? Who is stronger at the moment?
“In a war of attrition like the one going on today between Russia and the Ukraine, the Russians are decidedly superior both in terms of the number of soldiers and means: they have infinitely more even if we are dealing with somewhat antiquated models”.
So what do you foresee for the immediate future of the conflict?
“One thing is certain: if the Ukrainians are not able to feed their logistics line, not only men and ammunition, the outcome of the conflict”.