SIMFEROPOL, November 1. /TASS/. The United States and its NATO allies are planning to alter the regime of the Black Sea straits and utilize Europe’s inland waterways for military purposes to access the Black Sea, Nikolay Patrushev, Russian presidential aide and head of the Maritime Board, stated at a shipbuilding meeting in Crimea.
"The US and its NATO allies are exerting every effort to maintain their dominance, including in the world's oceans. Their plans involve expanding naval presence in the Black Sea, altering the regime of the Black Sea straits as established by the Montreux Convention, and using Europe’s inland waterways for military access to the Black Sea via the Danube River," Patrushev explained.
He noted that unfriendly Western countries are working to diminish Russia's role in the Black Sea region as part of their strategy to achieve a decisive defeat of Russia.