The military development of the territory of neighboring Ukraine causes deep concern for Russia – this concerns the real vital interests of the country and the people, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on a direct line on Wednesday, commenting on the incident with the entry of the British destroyer Defender into the territorial waters of the Russian Federation in the Crimea region.
“I am worried about something else – a more fundamental thing, namely the beginning of the military development of Ukrainian territory. According to the Constitution of Ukraine, there can be no foreign military bases there. You can create training centers there, use other forms. creates significant security problems. This concerns the real vital interests of the Russian Federation and the people of Russia. This is causing concern”, – Putin said.
Last week, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that the British destroyer Defender crossed the Russian border near Cape Fiolent (Crimea). The Russian border ship, after repeated warnings, fired warning shots, and the Su-24M fired warning bombings along the path of the destroyer. The British Ministry of Defense and the Government Office maintain that the destroyer was not fired upon and was not in Russian territorial waters.
The British Ministry of Defense insists that the ship made an innocent passage through the territorial waters of Ukraine in accordance with international law. Also, the British Ministry of Defense said that Russia was conducting firing practice in the Black Sea and had warned the “maritime community” in advance about its actions.
However, a BBC journalist on board the British vessel confirmed that the ship deliberately entered Russian territorial waters. Later, the Telegraph newspaper, citing sources in the Ministry of Defense, reported that the final decision on the passage of the British destroyer Defender in the Black Sea was left to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson. Johnson himself called the passage of the ship in these waters “quite appropriate”, recalling that the UK does not recognize the transition of Crimea to Russia.