RF Navy’s Commander Vladimir Vysotsky
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Ukraine Challenged Russia’s Right to Strengthen Black Sea Fleet in Crimea
The agreement on the RF Black Sea Fleet doesn’t provide for increasing the number of ships in Ukraine, news service of Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry announced Wednesday.
Russia may increase the number of ships of the RF Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol, the RF Navy’s Commander Vladimir Vysotsky announced May 30, reasoning that the basic agreement with Ukraine enables Russia to have up to 100 ships in the Black Sea Fleet. Today’s strength of that fleet is 35 ships and 11,000 sailors.
The list of warships and vessels of the Black Sea Fleet that belong to the Russian Federation in Ukrainian territory is strictly defined in the Agreement on the Status and Terms of the Deployment of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation in Ukraine. The basic agreement doesn’t provide for deploying any new warships and vessels of the RF Black Sea Fleet in Ukrainian territory, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.
Stepping up the strength of the RF Black Sea Fleet’s personnel doesn’t correspond to the logic of its further withdrawal, Ukrainian diplomats specified.
Under Russia-Ukraine’s bilateral agreement, the RF Black Sea Fleet stations in Ukraine till 2017. Today’s standing of Kiev is that the Fleet should withdraw from Crimea when the agreement expires.
www.kommersant.com
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