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Russia slams Ukrainian naval ship’s actions in Sea of Azov as a provocation

According to the data of Russia’s Federal Security Service, the Ukrainian Navy’s command ship Donbass left the port city of Mariupol at 09:12 Moscow time on Thursday, heading towards the Kerch Strait, although the Ukrainian side filed no requests for sailing through the Kerch-Yenikale Canal

Donbass naval ship George Chernilevsky/Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

Donbass naval ship

© George Chernilevsky/Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

MOSCOW, December 10. /TASS/. The actions by the Ukrainian naval ship Donbass in the Sea of Azov is a new provocation, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a live broadcast of the Time Will Show program on TV Channel One on Friday.

"To my mind, this is obvious. This is a new provocation. This is not a one-off, individual incident. This is a series of provocative actions that are being carried out around our borders," the spokeswoman said, commenting on the incident with the Ukrainian naval ship that attempted to sail through the Kerch-Yenikale Canal on Thursday night.

"To my mind, this has been already clear for all, proceeding from the statements made by the Russian security agencies," the diplomat pointed out.

"What we saw yesterday is a new provocation at sea," the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman stressed.

According to the data of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the Ukrainian Navy’s command ship Donbass left the port city of Mariupol at 09:12 Moscow time on Thursday, heading towards the Kerch Strait. The Ukrainian side filed no requests for sailing through the Kerch-Yenikale Canal, a maritime route in the Kerch Strait connecting the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.

At 13:45, a Russian coast guard ship warned the Donbass that it must comply with Russian law and apply for permission to navigate through the Kerch-Yenikale Canal. The ship’s crew replied that it did not plan to sail via the Kerch Strait. However, the vessel kept sailing towards the Kerch Strait and was 18 nautical miles from it, while ignoring commands to change course. Later on Thursday night, the Ukrainian naval ship reversed its course.

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Foreign policy Ukraine Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova

Military operation in Ukraine

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