PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY, March 29. /ITAR-TASS/. Russia has no plans to create naval and military bases abroad like American facilities, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview on Saturday News with Sergei Brilyov on Russian television.

Commenting on reports that Russia allegedly planned to open bases on the Seashells, in Vietnam, Nicaragua, Cuba and Argentina, Lavrov said "It is not true at all. We have no plans to create naval and military bases abroad in the meaning you understand the term."

"The Navy has strengthened significantly in Russia, and I think, after the joining of Crimea to Russia, it will have much more potentialities for development," he noted. Aside from the Black Sea Fleet, we have the Far Eastern, Northern and other fleets," he said. "It is very important for the state to have the navy on the highest level of training, especially when the fleet has not only to cross oceans for training, but carry out specific tasks to fight piracy in the Gulf of Aden. Pirates appear in other parts of the world ocean. The fleet makes long trips."

"We have agreed with some countries for our vessels and naval ships to use their existing infrastructure for calls, service, minor repair, replenishment of food and water reserves and rest of crews," Lavrov explained. “Construction of bases like American ones is out of the question. Any agreements like those concluded by Americans to ensure immunity for their servicemen from crimes in the country of their presence are also out of the question," he noted.

"By the way, I saw an interesting picture in the Internet the Russian Federation and red dots indicating locations of American military bases around it," he said. "It is impressive. They number more than a hundred. And an American serviceman phrase there 'How does Russia dare to settle so close to our bases?'."

In reply to the question whether the mentioned countries were among those to negotiate with about calls of ships, Lavrov said “There are several such countries, but these are issues to be considered by military departments.