U.S. loses contact with drone in SyriaMarch 18, 2015 - 11:03 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The United States lost contact with an unarmed Predator drone over Syria on Tuesday, March 17, U.S. officials said, stopping short of confirming the plane was taken down by Syrian air defenses, as said by Syrian state media, according to the Guardian. “At this time, we have no information to corroborate press reports that the aircraft was shot down,” a U.S. defense official stated, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We are looking into the incident and will provide more details when available.” Another U.S. official, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said flatly the United States could not “determine the cause yet”, without elaborating. It was the first such incident since the U.S.-led coalition began carrying out air strikes against the hardline militant Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria last summer. U.S. officials have previously described Syrian skies as relatively passive, noting that the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad had not taken aim at coalition aircraft flying over its territory. But earlier on Tuesday, Syria’s state news agency Sana said its air defenses brought down a U.S. surveillance plane in the coastal province of Latakia. “Syrian air defenses brought down a hostile U.S. surveillance plane in northern Latakia,” Sana said in a bulletin, without giving further details. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Putin congratulates Pashinyan’s birthday Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his birthday on June 1. Opposition motorcade en route to Gyumri for large rally A motorcade of protesters headed by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan is heading to the city of Gyumri. Ruling MPs, Foreign Minister talk Armenia-Azerbaijan processes MOs from the ruling Civil Contract party met with the Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in the Armenian parliament. Russia: Armenia’s frozen membership weakens CSTO position in Caucasus A Russian envoy said any step that could alienate the CSTO member states from each other is “deeply wrong”. |