MOSCOW, 24 Apr-RIA Novosti. Since Saturday evening, Russia has suspended the right of peaceful passage for foreign warships and other state-owned vessels in three areas of the Black Sea, according to the bulletin of the Department of Navigation and Oceanography of the Ministry of Defense.
It is emphasized that this restriction will be valid from 21.00 on April 24 to 21.00 on October 31.
The zones planned for closure will not prevent navigation through the Kerch Strait, in addition, all of them are located inside the territorial waters of Russia.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine protested to Moscow over this decision, pointing out that it was allegedly taken under the pretext of conducting military exercises, despite the fact that all areas planned for closure extend only to the outer border of the territorial sea of the Russian Federation.
Western reaction
The US State Department has called the ban on foreign vessels entering a number of areas of the Black Sea an "unprovoked escalation" by Russia.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Ned Price expressed in a written statement "deep concern" about the ban, and also accused Moscow of " creating obstacles to the operation of Ukrainian ports in the Sea of Azov."
In turn, the EU believes that Russia's closure of certain areas of the Black Sea "further destabilizes the situation." The representative of the European Union's foreign policy service, Peter Stano, called for the decision to be reversed.
Russia's response
Commenting on the reaction of Western politicians, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov stressed that Russia is acting in accordance with international agreements.
The Russian diplomat explained that we are talking about the passage of ships through the Kerch Strait.
He also called the restriction of certain zones where the exercises are held a generally accepted international practice. As Ryabkov noted, from this point of view, Russia acts on the basis of multilateral agreements.
