Listen to this article

On Tuesday, Russian authorities have warned the United States against sending warships to the Black Sea. Russian also urged American forces to stay away from the annexed Crimean peninsula for their own good. Point to be noted that the situation along Ukraine’s border caused increasing concern in the West. The US Secretary of State met with Ukrainian and NATO officials in Brussels. He made it clear that the Biden administration, along with its allies in Europe, has Ukraine’s back and considers Russia’s ongoing military buildup in the region very provocative. On Friday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said that Washington had informed Ankara that two US warships would pass through Turkish waters this week to be deployed in the Black Sea. The deployment would come amid a significant escalation of the conflict in eastern Ukraine between Russian-backed separatists and Ukraine’s forces (with US and European support).

Point to be noted that hostilities first flared in 2014 when Russia unilaterally annexed Crimea. It is a peninsula that sticks out into the Black Sea and is home to a Russian navy base, away from Ukraine, drawing condemnation from the Western world and a series of sanctions. On Tuesday, Russian Deputy Foreign Ministry Sergei Ryabkov was cited by Russian news agencies and called the deployment of US warships in the Black Sea a provocation designed to test Russia’s nerves. Ryabkov said, “There is absolutely nothing for American ships to be doing near our shores. We warn the United States that it will be better for them to stay far away from Crimea and our Black Sea coast. It will be for their own good”. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby declined to confirm the Turkish government’s statement during a regular press briefing on Friday.

The Turkish government issued a statement that US warships were being sent to the Black Sea. The current escalation has added strain to already tense US-Russian relations. The US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also warned Russia against aggressive actions. He said that any aggression in Ukraine would have consequences. Ryabkov responded on Tuesday and alleged the Russian adversary of trying to undermine Russia’s position on the international stage. He reiterated Russia’s readiness to defend the interests of its citizens, and ethnic Russian speakers in eastern Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was preparing itself in the event, any new sanctions should be imposed on Moscow by the US or its global partners. However, Russia has continued to move forces into both Crimea and the region along its border with Ukraine.