ABOARD USS ROSS — After a conflict between Russian armed troops and a British destroyer off the coast of Crimea last month, NATO And Ukraine conducted Black Sea manoeuvres involving dozens of warships in a two-week demonstration of their strong defence connections and capacity.
Cmdr. John D. John, on board the guided-missile destroyer previously sent to the area for training, stated, “We’d like to demonstrate to everyone, the world community, that no one government can claim the Black Sea or any international body of water.” “Those bodies of water belong to the world community, and we’re dedicated to ensuring that all countries have access to international waterways.”
The Russian Defense Ministry stated that Sea Breeze was being actively monitored. In the Black Sea and southern Russia, the Russian military staged a series of concurrent manoeuvres, with aeroplanes rehearsing bombing missions and long-range air defence missiles deploying to protect the coast.
Russia slammed the Defender’s action as a provocation and threatened to fire on invading vessels if it happened again.
The event heightened relations between Russia and NATO’s members. Over Moscow’s annexation of Crimea, its support for a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine, claims of Russian cyber assaults, election meddling, and other irritants, relations between Russia and the West have fallen to post-Cold War lows.
The Sea Breeze participants, according to John onboard the Ross, were exercising their freedom to operate in international seas. “A concrete show of our commitment to each other for a secure and stable Black Sea region,” he said of the drills.