MOSCOW, November 25. /TASS/. The attempt by Ukrainian warships to illegally enter the Kerch Strait is a provocation aimed at boosting the authorities’ low rating before the upcoming presidential elections, Chairman of the Russian State Duma's International Affairs Committee Leonid Slutsky said.
"This is a blatant provocation, which may have been authorized only at the highest level. Apparently, by doing so President Poroshenko hopes to improve his rating before the elections. This is his agony before the polls," Slutsky said.
Kiev has used the best recipes of its sponsors from overseas and is trying to distract attention from very low living standards in Ukraine by the so-called ‘heroic steps’ on the border with Russia, the senator said.
"We have stated this many times and this is another proof that the current Ukrainian leadership does not need peace and it does not care about the welfare of its citizens. They came to power in a military coup d’etat and continue using bloody and criminal methods for retaining it," he noted.
Earlier on Sunday, the Russian Federal Security Service’s Border Service in Crimea reported that three Ukrainian warships had illegally crossed Russia’s state border entering its territorial waters, and were carrying out dangerous maneuvers.
A source in law enforcement agencies of the South Federal District identified these vessels as two small armored boats Berdyansk, Nikopol and tugboat Krasnoperekopsk (which was renamed by Ukraine).
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry accused Russia’s vessels of illegally using force against the Ukrainian warships. "We view these aggressive steps as the violation of the United Nations Charter and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and a bilateral legal basis," the ministry said.