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US drone crash

The Pentagon has released a video it says provides evidence that a Russian fighter jet caused a US spy drone to crash into the Black Sea this week. The Pentagon says the video shows that the Russian fighter jet clipped the propeller of the American MQ9 Reaper drone, causing its crash near Ukraine. The video was filmed by the drone which the US says was on a regular reconnaissance mission in international airspace. Russia denies that and sees the incident as a provocation. Moscow says the aircraft went down after making “sharp maneuvers”. It has warned of a proportionate response in case of future provocations. That’s while the US says it will continue to fly and operate wherever international law allows. The incident was the first direct encounter between the two powers since the Ukraine war began in February last year.

Joint naval exercises

Iran, Russia and China are set to kick off their joint military drills in the Indian Ocean and the Sea of Oman. A spokesperson for the Maritime Security Belt Combined exercise says the 4-day drills will start on Thursday night. Rear admiral Mostafa Taj-aldini said Iran’s naval forces will be joined by Russian and Chinese units to carry out different maneuvers. Exercises will include tactical drills and saving hijacked vessels as well as firing at air and sea mock targets. Iran says the drills are aimed at insuring security in the region and improving trilateral relations and global peace. The new drill is the fourth one Iran, Russia and China are conducting jointly. Observers from Pakistan and Kazakhstan will be in attendance during the drills.

Ban on TikTok

New Zealand says it will ban China’s popular social media app, TikTok, from lawmakers’ devices, becoming the latest western nation to put the restriction.  Parliament officials say TikTok will be banned on all devices with access to the parliamentary network. They say the decision follows talks with colleagues across the government and internationally. The restriction will begin at the end of this month. The US, Canada, Britain, and the European Union have already banned the video-sharing app from devices operated by government staff. They’ve all cited security concerns that the app can share user information with the Chinese government. Tik-Tok has rejected that, saying it has spent billions of dollars on data security. Beijing also says the bans are politically motivated, with the West trying to hinder China’s development.

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