Contents tagged with Kerch Strait

  • Ukraine plans to build new naval base in the Sea of Azov

    Ukrainian Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak ordered to prepare the required documentation for the construction of a new naval base in the Sea of Azov. "I have instructed the Naval Commander to send estimates for the construction of a naval base in the Sea of Azov. We definitely should strengthen our presence there. We should respond to the threats in the Sea of Azov,” the Defense Minister said on the Ukrainian TV.

    At the meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group in Minsk, Ukraine proposed to …

  • US Senate calls for ‘tough operation’ to liberate Kerch Strait for navigation

    The US Senate has called for a “tough operation” to liberate the Kerch Strait for navigation, with nearly half of senators urging President Donald Trump to take such a step, BBC reports.

    The authors of the resolution, which was signed by 39 Senate members, believe that this is a necessary response to Russia’s actions in the Kerch Strait on November 25, when it captured three Ukrainian vessels and their crews.

    The resolution was drafted by Republican Ron Johnson, head of the Homeland Security …

  • Russia: passage of Ukrainian ships through the Kerch Strait can ‘aggravate the situation’

    The official representative for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova commented on the statement made by the Secretary of the National Security Council Oleksandr Turchynov that Ukraine is preparing another passage of ships through the Kerch Strait.

    According to her, this can “aggravate the situation.” The spokeswoman for the MFA said that Turchynov’s statement is “provocative.”

    “It [the statemen]) is absolutely irresponsible, and it is intended to aggravate the situation. …

  • Turchynov: Ukraine preparing to send more ships through Kerch Strait with international help

    Oleksandr Turchynov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine, told BBC Ukraine in an interview that the country is planning to send more ships through the Kerch Strait with the help of international partners.

    “Yes, it is a matter of principle for us. If we stop and back down, then Russia will effectively achieve its goal of capturing the Sea of Azov, and will present to the world the new maritime borders in the Black Sea that it has determined, de facto …

  • NATO condemns Russia’s militarization of the Crimea

    On December 18, while commenting on the Russian Defense Ministry’s statement about the deployment of more than ten Su-27SM and Su-30M2 fighters from Krymsk in the Krasnodar Territory to the Crimean airfield Belbek, NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said that the ongoing militarization of the Crimea and the Black and Azov Seas threatens the sovereignty of Ukraine and undermines the stability of the entire region, DW reports.

    The alliance stated that Russia must release the Ukrainian sailors and …

  • Volker: US will send more weapons to Ukraine

    In the next few months, the US intends to send Ukraine a new batch of weapons, US Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker announced at a press conference.

    According to him, the US has the opportunity to sell Ukraine additional weapons.

    “Announcements will be made, and Congress will be notified about the first tranches in the next few months,” Volker noted.

    He added that Washington will negotiate weapons shipments with Ukraine for as long as they are needed.

    The special representative …

  • Ukraine puts its cyber forces in combat mode

    Russia orchestrated a powerful DDoS attack on the Ukrainian Defense Ministry website at the same time as its border guards were attacking and capturing the Ukrainian boats in the Kerch Strait, said Major General Volodymyr Rapko, head of the Ukrainian General Staff’s Main Directorate for Communications and Information Systems, at a press conference on Monday, December 17.

    “In the entire state cybersecurity system, the Armed Forces of Ukraine hold one of the leading places. The relevant …

  • UN General Assembly condemns militarization of Crimea and the Sea of Azov by Russia

    The UN General Assembly supported the resolution proposed by Ukraine that expressed serious concerns regarding the militarization of the Crimea, the Sea of Azov and part of the Black Sea adjacent to the region, Interfax reports.

    The resolution also calls on Russia to release the Ukrainian military ships detained on November 25. Moscow’s use of force has been called by other nations to be unjustified.

    A separate paragraph of the resolution condemns the construction and opening of the bridge …

  • Poroshenko: Martial law in Ukraine will be extended only in case of Russian attack

    Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko stated at a press conference in Kyiv that Ukrainian authorities won’t extend martial law unless Russia conducts "large-scale aggression."

    “If there is no large-scale aggression or the invasion of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation into the territory of Ukraine beyond the demarcation line and the administrative border of the Crimea, the Martial law will not be extended,” TV Channel 112 Ukraine cited the President as saying.

    Poroshenko also added …

  • Ukrainian President: Putin refuses to talk about Kerch Strait incident because he has nothing to say

    Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin is disingenuous when saying that the reason he is refusing a telephone conversation because of the election process in Ukraine. In Poroshenko’s opinion, the head of the Kremlin simply has nothing to say.

    At a press conference on Sunday, the President of Ukraine said: “When, during the act of aggression, I called him to talk, he refused to have a conversation not because, as he explains, the election process in …