MOSCOW, June 23. /TASS/. NATO’s naval activity near the Russian borders has increased substantially, and its provocative nature increases the potential of incidents to occur, Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov said at the Moscow Conference on International Security on Wednesday.
"NATO’s naval activity near our borders has grown considerably. Warships outfitted with long-range precision weapons are operating in the Black and Baltic Seas constantly, while reconnaissance, patrol and attack aircraft and also unmanned aerial vehicles are performing their flights. The operations by the warships of the United States and its allies are clearly of a provocative nature," the Russian military chief stressed.
On October 13, 2020, the UK guided-missile destroyer Dragon violated the rule of the innocent passage through Russia’s territorial sea 22 km west of Sevastopol as it was crossing over with its weapon control and air target detection radar stations switched on for radiation, the military chief recalled.
"On November 24, the US Navy guided-missile destroyer John McCain violated the Russian state border in the northwestern part of the Sea of Japan at approaches to the Peter the Great Bay (93 km south of Vladivostok), crossing more than 2 km into the Russian territorial sea," the chief of the Russian General Staff said.
Therefore, prerequisites are being created for the emergence of incidents, which does not contribute to reducing military tensions, Gerasimov stressed.