THE HAGUE, September 23. /TASS/. Ukraine's accusations against Russia over the Crimean Bridge are completely outside the framework of the UN maritime Convention, Gennady Kuzmin, Ambassador-at-Large and Russia’s UN International Court of Justice envoy, stated in the international arbitration.

"Just as it was in the UN International Court of Justice, Ukraine's accusations in this arbitration are not serious, they are nothing more than another example of systematic abuse of the international justice system for purely political purposes," the diplomat emphasized. "Most of Ukraine's claims, including the main accusations concerning the Crimean Bridge and various sovereign rights, are completely outside the framework of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea," the head of the Russian delegation said.

According to him, the need for the bridge’s construction arose after Ukraine chose to enact policies aimed at starving the population of Crimea. "Ukraine also seems to be exaggerating the allegedly negative consequences of the bridge’s construction for navigation in the strait," Kuzmin noted. "The construction of the bridge was a major infrastructure project based on extensive research, with several designs and an assessment of any possible impact on the environment included."

Ukraine initiated a dispute on this matter on September 16, 2016. An international tribunal was established by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in the Hague to conduct the proceedings. The Ukrainian side alleges that Russia violates Ukraine’s sovereign rights to use maritime zones and the continental shelf in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov, and the Kerch Strait near Crimea, including its rights to natural resources. In regards to this, Kiev demands that Moscow cease violating Ukraine’s rights and compensate the damages incurred. The Russian side denies these accusations.