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Senior Russian MP slams US decision to send warship to Black Sea as a provocation

On Monday, it was reported that the command ship Mount Whitney was heading for the Black Sea for joint operations with NATO forces

MOSCOW, November 1. /TASS/. The US decision to send the 6th Fleet’s flagship to the Black Sea for operations with NATO forces is a provocation, Head of the State Duma Committee on Defense Andrei Kartapolov said on Monday.

"I believe that such actions as sending the US 6th Fleet’s flagship, command ship Mount Whitney to the Black Sea are outright provocative and clearly destructive. This is yet another destabilizing factor in the region," the senior Russian lawmaker said, as quoted by the press office of the State Duma Committee on Defense for TASS.

"However, I want to remind the West of the fact that Russia is always ready for any challenges. We can guarantee security and the reliable protection of all of our frontiers, all the more so in the Black Sea," he stressed.

The US 6th Fleet announced on its Twitter on Monday that its flagship, command ship Mount Whitney was heading for the Black Sea for joint operations with NATO forces. On October 30, the US guided missile destroyer Porter entered the Black Sea for joint operations with the alliance’s forces.

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United States State Duma Black Sea

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