Today, Ukraine accused Russia of violating the norms and principles of international law by restricting the freedom of navigation in the Black Sea.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine stated that Russia, under the pretext of military exercises, announced the closure of a part of the Black Sea waters in the direction of the Kerch Strait, for warships and state vessels of other countries, from next week until October.
"Such actions of Russia represent another attempt to violate the norms and principles of international law with the aim of usurping the sovereign rights of Ukraine as a coastal state, since Ukraine received the rights to regulate navigation in this part of the Black Sea," the Ukrainian Ministry said.
It is also stated that this step represents a "gross violation" of the right to freedom of navigation, guaranteed by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Embassy of Ukraine in Serbia reported.
"According to the Convention, Russia must not be an obstacle or hindrance to transit through the international strait to ports in the Sea of Azov," the statement reads.
The Ukrainian Ministry also states that Russia "against the background of the continuous increase in military presence along the border with Ukraine on land, has begun to intensify the escalation at sea."
"It transfers warships from the Caspian Sea and strengthens its military potential in the Azov-Black Sea region and, despite the absence of a legal basis, has decided to close this water area to the warships of other countries, especially Ukraine. The behavior of the Russian side indicates the absence of any intention that Russia rejects continued aggression against Ukraine using military and hybrid methods," it added.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine sent a "sharp protest against those actions" of Russia and requested "the immediate cancellation of the decision on the illegal closure of certain areas of the Black Sea."
"We call on international partners to increase political and diplomatic pressure on the aggressor state with the aim of canceling the decision to close the waters and to stop the escalation in the Azov-Black Sea region," the Ministry stated.
Tensions between Russia and Ukraine have been rising since Russia recently began massing troops along the border with eastern Ukraine, which is controlled by Moscow-backed pro-Russian separatists.
Relations were further worsened by yesterday's detention of the Ukrainian consul in St. Petersburg, Alexander Sosonyuk.
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said it arrested Sosonjuk during a meeting with a Russian citizen in which he received "information of a confidential nature located in the bases of security agencies and the FSB."
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